War of Vengeance
by SupergamerGreg79
Summary: Eggman Nega is hatching an unknown plan to finally realize his goals. Will the heroes be able to stop him, and will Armand finally get the chance to avenge his father? Or will Nega finally achieve his goal? Chapter 6 is up.
1. New Sport, New Plan

Sonic and Co. © Sega  
OCs © Respective Authors  
Blitzball © Square Enix

Note: That last disclaimer was because of the Aquaball sport. It's my special version of Blitzball from Final Fantasy X, and Aquaball has some new moves but keeps some of the old ones, so the disclaimer is to prevent any plagiarism. Just a precaution.

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Chapter 1: New Sport, New Plan

It had been a month and two weeks since Nega's last defeat at the hands of Amy Rose. During that time, the cities in the world that were hit had been going through a major rebuilding, with the heroes helping and everyone in the world working together. Within three weeks, thanks to the combined efforts of GUN, the heroes, and the people of the world, the cities were all repaired, and people continued their daily lives in peace, without fear of attacks or death by robot. During that time, the heroes resumed their usual lives, with some going on dates, others doing their duties, and the rest just enjoying themselves.

Today was no different in Station birds were chirping, the sun's rays were beaming down onto the earth below, and...a large crowd was gathering around a stadium? That's right. A new stadium had been completed about two weeks ago. The stadium was supposed to contain some chaos-powered bronze rings that kept water into a certain form. In this case, it was a giant sphere pool. Inside the pool were two upside-down triangular goals, one on each side. One was blue, and the other was red. This was the new stadium for a new sport created. Its name was Aquaball, a sport combining soccer and football that was played underwater.

Two teams had been formed, and had gotten some practice in over the next couple of weeks. The teams were the Station Square Aeronites, and the Central City Aquatic Stars. The Aeronites' uniforms consisted of green jerseys, green shorts, and white shoes, as well as green air necklaces. To separate them from one another, each had different colored stripes going down the uniform. The Aquatic Stars' uniforms consisted of 3/4 jeans, light blue jerseys with star patterns on it, yellow shoes, and blue air necklaces. To separate them from one another, the flames on the sides off their jeans were of different colors. Today, an exhibition game would be played so that everyone could watch and enjoy the intensity of the sport that had been mentioned.

In the Aeronites' locker room, located on the right side of the stadium, 6 different players were getting ready. One was the well-known Basil Giles, son of Tobias Novak's best friend Thomas. Ever since hearing rumors about the sport, he has wanted to try it out, and agreed to be a captain in the test game. His uniform was a green jersey, green shorts, and white shoes. He also had a green air necklace sitting near him, which he wasn't going to put on until it was gametime. There were two red stripes going down the sides of his jersey, and the laces on his shoes, as well as his gloves, were red. He and his team had spent two weeks practicing for this test game, and so far, everything had worked out. In this particular game, he was the Left Forward.

He looked over at his teammates, all wearing the same uniform as him, but with different colored laces, gloves, and stripes to tell each other apart. A green crocodile named Carmen was stretching her legs, preparing for the upcoming game. Her color was violet, and she was playing Right Forward. Nearby was the rather calm Adam the Chameleon, a red chameleon. He had the blue color, and was playing Midfielder. Talking about defense were a black beagle named Daren the Dog and a golden-brown rabbit named Samuel. They were playing Left and Right Defenders respectively, and their respective colors were yellow and orange. And near the door, a light-gray armadillo named Shannon was inspecting her equipment, making sure it was all in place. Her color was white.

Basil called over his teammates for a pregame talk.

"Alright, team, this is the first game ever of Aquaball. Remember that this is a test game, so for this game, it doesn't matter whether we win or lose. What matters is that we make this game exciting." Basil told his team. "If this game is great enough, then Aquaball becomes an official sport, and that's something that I'd like. So far, the only two teams are our team, and the Aquatic Stars. More will follow up if the game's a success. So, what do we do?"

"Make the game exciting!" The team responded.

"Does it matter whether or not we win or lose!?" Basil asked.

"No!" The team responded.

"Then let's go!"

While the Aeronites were preparing for the game, the Aquatic Stars, in the locker room on the left side of the stadium, were getting themselves ready. They were just as excited and enthusiastic about this new sport as the Aeronites were. Their leader was a indigo hedgehog named Chase. He had agreed to be one of the captains of the two teams that would be formed for the test game due to the supposed excitement. The Stars' uniforms were white jerseys with 3 stars on each sleeve, 3/4 length white slacks, and white trainers with different colored laces for each player. Their air necklaces were white. The stars on Chase's uniform were purple, as well as his gloves and the laces on his trainers.

He looked over to his team, who were all getting ready as well. The first one he looked at was a black lizard named Drago. He wore the same jersey and jeans as Chase, but the stars on the sleeves of his jersey were orange, as well as his gloves and the laces on his trainers. Drago was the right forward. Chase then looked at a blue-green otter named Opal. She had the same uniform, but the stars on her uniform were of a dark blue, as well as the gloves and laces. He then looked at his two defenders, left and right respectively, and smiled. Alan the Tiger himself was wearing red on his uniform. Chase had it custom-made in order to protect him from the water, and to make it so that his electric powers wouldn't electrify the water. The other defender was a light-gray snow leopard named Bandy Snow. Her color was cyan, as noted on the stars, her gloves, and her laces. They looked like the perfect couple. However, one member of their team was missing.

"Hey, where's Breeze?" Chase asked.

"Sorry, Captain Chase! I had a hard time getting here." A voice said from the doorway.

The voice belonged to a white female squirrel. Her name was Breeze, and she was wearing black stars on her jersey, and had black gloves and laces on her trainers. She was playing goalie for the Stars. Once she was with her team, Chase gave his team a pre-game talk, which was basically identical to the one Basil gave the Aeronites, and they headed out to the sphere pool.

* * *

Meanwhile, outside the large stadium, which had a steel bowl-shaped exterior with steel supports holding it up, there was a large crowd gathering. They had come to see just what the sport was all about. Those that weren't attending would be watching the game by television. Even some of the heroes would be watching the game, if only because two other heroes they knew were playing: Basil and Alan. The other team members had been met by the heroes earlier in the week. There was a large steel door blocking the way in, and wouldn't open until near gametime.

"Man, I cannot wait to see just how this Aquaball game is played." Sonic said. "It better be as exciting as the rumors say, because there are other things that I can be doing right now."

"You mean things that you've done during this whole time of peace?" Shadow asked

"Uhh...no?" Sonic said, unsure of himself.

"Yeah, right." Shadow replied. "As for me, I'm not one for these types of events, but in this case, I might just sit back and watch."

"Some of us are here for a reason other than just the game." Armand spoke up. "Basil is playing in this game, which is why Tails, Axel, and I are here. Alan's playing, which was enough for Emily and Vash to come along."

"And what about the rest of us heroes?" Sonic asked.

"Listen, if you don't want to watch, then go do whatever it is you wanted to do!" Shadow said, annoyed.

"Nah, I'll watch." Sonic said. "Besides, it's something new, and I like new things sometimes."

"That wasn't your reaction earlier..." Shadow muttered inaudibly.

Just then, the large metal doors opened, clearing the way to the stands. Looking inside, the sphere pool was halfway filled up. Four water spouts were shooting out water, and the chaos-powered ring at the edge of the water kept it in its form. It was a sight to behold. In fact, once the doors opened all the way, people started pouring into the stands, some tripping over others, and a few people shoving others out of the way. Inside the stands, anyone could see both teams standing on opposite sides of the large ring that served as the entry point, looking at one another in a glare of competition.

It wasn't long before the sphere pool was complete, and by that time, the stands had been filled to capacity. Once everyone had been seated, the twelve players entered the sphere pool. The water had been set to a level that wasn't too hot or too cold, and the players, having trained for the past two weeks, swam gracefully through the water, with hardly any hindrance. The two teams, save for the goalies, met in the center. The two captains looked at each other for a brief moment, slowly kicking their feet to stay suspended in the water, as with the rest of the team.

"Good luck to you in this game, Basil." Chase said.

"Same to you, Chase." Basil replied. "And even though it doesn't matter who wins or loses in this game, I will try my best to win."

"I wouldn't expect anything less from the son of Tobias Novak's best friend." Chase replied with a smile.

The two captains then shook hands, and the teams returned to their sides for final talks. The talks were nothing important. The players then split to their positions. On the Aeronites' side, Basil looked around at his teammates. Carmen was already in position, ready to get the ball and score. Adam was calmly preparing for the ball launch, at which he would face off against Opal. Daren the Dog was doing flips in the water, to which Basil told him to cut it out. Samuel was in his position, prepared to prevent the ball from getting past. Shannon looked calm as ever as she got ready. The Stars were the same on the other side, with Alan getting a bit excited. Basil then got down in a sprinter's stance, as did the others except for the goalies, and awaited the ball launch.

The positions where they were at were yellow arrow-shaped platforms that were actually holographic, but the players looked like they were standing on solid ground. This was because they had gotten used to this. In the direct center of the sphere pool was a white circular platform with blue and orange outlines. Located in the center was a rubber ball about the size of a soccer ball, and it contained bumps on it for grip. Up above, there was a waterproof scoreboard with a metal frame around it. The scores were randomizing before being set to zero each, and the timer was set to 0:00. Up above the scores were the symbols for the teams. The Aeronites' symbol was a cloud shape, and the Stars' symbol was...well, a star.

Once the scores were set to 0 and the timer was at 0:00, the buzzer sounded. The ball rapidly spun around, then launched up into the upper sphere. Opal and Adam looked at each other for a split second, then both of them jumped for the ball. Both players reached a hand out for it, trying to get it before the other did. The other players had moved from their positions, ready to get the ball once it was in possession of a team.

Adam made a lunge for the ball, but Opal managed to grab it first. In order to avoid an immediate loss of the ball, she immediately passed it to Alan, who started to swim towards the goal, even though he wasn't a shooter. Alan saw Carmen coming in for a tackle, but he ducked under it and immediately passed it to Bandy, who started moving on her edge of the sphere pool. As she reached the center edge, she was tackled by Basil, knocking the ball loose and sending it down. Daren immediately chased after it, and narrowly dodged a tackle from Opal in order to get the ball. He immediately passed it to Samuel, who immediately knocked it to Carmen.

"Okay, time for the first shot of the...OOF!"

Carmen was attacked by Alan and lost the ball. However, Adam managed to get his hands on it and made it into Stars territory. Dodging an attack from Bandy, he dropped the ball to his right foot and kicked it towards the goal. It headed towards the goal, but Breeze saw it coming, and leapt to her right, letting the ball sail right into her hand. She made a long pass to Drago, who was all the way in Aeronites territory, but Daren managed to intercept the ball and grab it. He passed it to Basil, who tossed it above him and did a slow-moving backflip. He kicked the ball while upside down, and it headed towards the Stars' goal. Breeze jumped for it, but it just brushed her fingertips and sailed in. The buzzer rang, marking the first goal of the game.

"Yes!" Basil yelled. "First goal! This is fun!"

Everyone reset to their positions, and the ball was launched again. Because the Aeronites had scored the recent goal, the Stars got the ball. Opal passed it to Chase, who immediately ran into Basil. However, before the fox could make an attempt to tackle the hedgehog, he passed the ball behind him to Bandy, who swam around Basil and headed for the goal. However, she didn't make it far, because Daren was there, ready to attack her. He spread his arms out and charged forward, tackling Bandy, stealing the ball, and freezing her solid. Daren had just performed an Ice Tackle. He started heading upwards, hoping to avoid a few players, but Alan was already on his way to intercept.

"Oh no you don't!" Alan said.

"What the...!"

Alan then tackled Daren and stole the ball before passing it to Drago. The lizard dodged Carmen, Adam, and Samuel, then dropped the ball in front of him and kicked it towards the Aeronites' goal. Shannon saw the ball coming to her, and she set herself up. As the ball reached her, she kicked it away from her. However, this allowed Chase to set up a volley shot, and he immediately sent the ball back towards the goal. Shannon did not see this coming, and could not prevent the ball from going in. The buzzer sounded, and the score was tied up.

"BOOYA!" Chase yelled. "But that was a good try, Shannon!"

Shannon just nodded and got back in position. Once everyone was in position, the ball was launched again. This time, the Aeronites got possession of it. Adam started moving downwards, managing to jump over Opal's tackle, slipped by Drago's tackle, and ducked Chase's tackle before passing the ball to Carmen. However, during the pass, the ball was covered in a slight green aura. It was a Venom Pass. Alan got a hand on it, and was poisoned. It wasn't lethal, though, but it would drain his stamina. Plus, he wouldn't be able to use any attacks. The ball managed to reach Carmen anyway, and she got close to the goal before kicking the ball at it. Breeze happened to be on the side she shot at, and immediately grabbed the ball...with her tail.

"Whoa!" Carmen said, amazed at Breeze's move.

Breeze proceeded to throw the ball in with her tail after singling out Bandy, who had defrosted after the last goal was made, but before she could throw it in, the buzzer sounded, ending the first half. At that point, all status effects were cleared of any player who had it, and the teams exited the sphere pool for halftime. Meanwhile, the crowd was cheering loudly. This game was popular alright. It would seem that the world had gained a new sport.

* * *

In the Aeronites' locker room, Basil was giving his team a talk.

"Well-played first half, team!" Basil commented. "You all put an equal amount of effort out there. But it's not going to get any easier. It sounds like the crowd enjoys the sport, so we just have to keep playing like in the first half. Ready?"

"YEAH!" The team chanted.

"Alright! Let's go!"

In the Stars' locker room, Chase was complimenting his team.

"Way to go out there! We're keeping the score tied!" Chase commented. "But they're probably going to go a bit harder out there in the second half, so we have to do the same. Ready?"

"READY!" The team chanted.

"Then let's get back out there!"

* * *

The players headed back into the sphere pool for the second half. Adam and Opal faced off again for the ball launch. This time, Adam was the one who caught it. He resisted Opal's immediate tackle and passed the ball behind him to Samuel. The rabbit started moving down until he was almost at the bottom, then he started moving towards Stars' territory. However, he was met by Drago and Alan, who double-teamed him to get the ball. Alan was the one who took the ball, and passed it to Bandy when he saw her open. However, he didn't see Basil coming in, and when the ball was halfway to the snow leopard, he intercepted it. Basil continued on towards the Stars' goal when Chase caught up to him.

"You want this ball, Chase?" Basil asked.

"Hand it over, Basil!" Chase said as he started to tackle him.

"Go get it!" Basil said as he passed it to Daren, who was above him. Daren took the ball and threw it to Adam, but the chameleon couldn't get a grip on it, and lost the ball. Chase saw this as his chance. He swam towards the ball, which had just entered the Aeronites' side of the pool, and did a roundhouse kick on the ball. The ball flew at a high speed towards the goal. Shannon did not expect the ball to be kicked from such a far range, and as such was unprepared for it. She saw it at the last moment and reached out to her left, but the ball was out of her reach, and sailed into the goal, giving the Stars the lead.

"Yes! We're in the lead!" Chase said.

On the next ball launch, Adam took it and swam forward, straight at Opal. The otter did not expect Adam to go right at her, but she tried to tackle him anyway. However, Adam passed the ball down to Basil, who dodged an attack from Alan and kicked the ball towards the goal. Breeze, who had been keeping an eye on the ball, wondered why Basil would make such an attempt. She jumped to the right and managed to deflect the ball...right towards Carmen. The crocodile grabbed the ball and immediately punched it at the goal. Breeze wasn't able to deflect this one, and it sailed past her and into the goal, tying up the game again.

"Who's in the lead now!?" Basil asked, having overheard Chase's gloat after their last goal.

Opal got the ball at the next launch. She started swimming towards her right side, hoping to get by Adam. Unfortunately for her, Carmen got in her path and knocked the ball loose. Basil, Daren, Alan, and Drago were all swimming for it, hoping to get it. However, each of the four did not notice the other three aiming for the ball, and as they reached it, they crashed into each other in a four-player heap, which knocked them all out for the time being. The ball, however, had been moved when the crash happened, and Bandy retrieved it. She looked up at the clock, and saw that time was running short. If the Stars were going to win, she'd have to either make a goal or have Chase or Opal do so. She decided to chance it.

She started swimming forward at a high speed, charging right for the Aeronites' goal. She managed to duck a tackle from Adam. Carmen hit her with a tackle, but the snow leopard held onto the ball. She reached the center of the sphere, where she encountered Samuel. Dodging a tackle from him, she reached the defenders' positions, where she was in range to kick it. She looked to both sides to make sure she had a clear shot, and managed to flip over a tackle that Samuel attempted. She then decided to use a special move herself. She may not have been a shooter, but she could make one last effort to put the Stars in the lead.

Making sure that nobody was around to interfere, she wound up, and started spinning in a circle, counterclockwise. Holding the ball above her head with both hands, she slowly rose up in the water. She then lowered the ball to about chest level while still spinning; by this time, it was hard for anyone to keep up with her. At that point, she dropped the ball and kicked it to the goal. The ball went at high speed, and it was hard for Shannon to keep track of it. The ball was in range, and she jumped for it. The ball brushed her fingertips and was about to go into the goal when the final buzzer sounded, ending the game. Because the ball had not officially gotten past the goalie and went in, the shot did not count. It was a tie game.

The teams met in the center, and the four that had crashed had regained consciousness. The 12 players met in the center of the sphere pool. Basil and Chase shook hands.

"You played a great game, Basil." Chase said.

"You too, Chase." Basil replied.

The Aeronites then shook hands with the Stars player that was playing the same position as them, and the crowd cheered wildly. The sport was definitely popular, and people would definitely want a league started. As the cheering went on, the players exited the sphere pool to rest up. They were glad that the sport was so popular, and were glad to know that there would be a league. After all, it was known that if the sport was popular, a league would be formed. Now people who wanted to become Aquaball players would sign up, train, and hopefully be accepted into the league.

* * *

However, somewhere on a large deserted island with seemingly no life, a large violet portal appeared. From it emerged a figure in a floating hovercraft. The figure, clearly a male, entered a secret password into a terminal, and it opened. As he went through the corridors to the main chamber, he looked at the various things being created. Weapons, robots, vehicles...everything necessary for a full-scale war. A large door opened at the end of the corridor path, and inside it were two shadowed figures, both male, but unidentifiable past that.

"How are things going with production, my followers?" The dark figure asked.

"Things are going well, my lord." One of the shadowed figures replied.

"Our destruction force is nearly complete." The other of the two replied. "We shall soon be ready to start the grand war...Eggman Nega."

"Good." The figure said, now known as Eggman Nega as his face was lit up. "Soon this whole world will crumble before my sight. I will not accept penultimate failure this time! In this upcoming conflict, we shall have the advantage, and we shall finally win!"

Nega then laughed an evil laugh that could be heard well throughout the base, startling, and even possibly scaring, those working within. A new conflict...was coming.

**End of Chapter 1.**

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Eggman Nega has returned once more, and he seems to have everything he needs to start an immense war and come out on top. Will the heroes be able to succeed? Or will Nega finally achieve his goal, and ruin the world as everyone knows it? Find out as the story continues.

Read and review.


	2. Nega's Army Arises

Sonic and Co. © Sega  
OCs © Respective Authors

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Chapter 2: Nega's Army Arises

It had been only ten minutes since the first ever Aquaball game ended. The game had ended in a tie between the Station Square Aeronites and the Central City Aquatic Stars, and the sport itself had become popular with just one game. A league would be started, including teams from other cities, and more people would participate. As for which teams would come to be, there was no knowledge. However, it was a peaceful day, so after the game was over, people would return to their normal lives.

Basil was standing near the street, just outside the locker rooms, talking with Armand, Tails, and Axel, the latter near his bright red car. He had gotten his driver's license three weeks back, and managed to rebuild a nearly-scrapped car to the point where it looked brand new.

"That was an exciting game, Basil." Armand complimented.

"Who knew that a game played underwater would be so popular, considering what all has happened during these years?" Tails asked.

"I guess it's a new form of entertainment." Basil said. "I mean, with all of Nega's attacks at times, plus the things that are always going on, people need something that they can use to forget it all, if only temporarily. And with how today's game went, I think we've found that something."

Before he knew it, though, he was tackled by a certain gray rabbit, who immediately gave him a hug.

"Basil, you were great in that game!" The rabbit said.

"Th-Thanks, Velocity." Basil replied while blushing a bit. "Glad you enjoyed the game."

Over the month-and-a-half that passed between Nega's last defeat and now, Basil and Velocity had grown close, with Velocity pecking him on the cheek at least three times a week. It was no surprise that Velocity liked Basil and had a crush on him, and it was known among some of the heroes. However, they didn't know, but rather suspected, that Basil had a crush on Velocity. Tails smiled at the thought of Basil and Velocity being in love. But his smile was soon crushed when he heard an explosion in the city. Armand, Axel, and Velocity heard it as well.

"What the hell...?" Armand asked.

People were running around, and screaming as well, trying to stay out of harm's way. Just then, a large twenty-foot tall robot came stomping around the corner. It was a large black-and-yellow humanoid robot, with a familiar logo on the chest, a cockpit shaped in a familiar face, and its arms had a cannon on the right and a machine gun on the other. There was nobody who wouldn't know who this was.

"Tee hee hee hee!" A familiar voice laughed. "I'm back to destroy the world, and this time, I WILL succeeed!"

"Damn it, Nega! Won't you ever GIVE IT A REST!?" Axel asked as he charged at the robot. "You'll never succeed against us! Especially not alone!"

"Ah, but who said I was alone?" Nega asked. "Other areas of the city are being attacked right now!"

* * *

In downtown Station Square, Teams Dark and Legendary were taking cover from an AK-47 being shot at them. The weapon handler was a gray wolf with a white shirt bearing Nega's symbol, blue pants, white gloves, and gray boots. From a distance, he was holding the AK, and he had some grenades that looked like baseballs hooked onto his shirt. In his pockets were several AK magazines, and he was quick at reloading that nobody dared try to move in during a break in the fire. Whoever this guy was, he was good. The wolf then plucked a grenade off of his shirt, pulled the pin, and threw it at the heroes. The grenade landed right in the middle of Team Dark. The trio backed away, with Rouge taking to the air and Shadow and Omega backing away, and allowed the grenade to explode harmlessly.

"Damn! Just who is this guy?" Shadow asked.

"I don't know, but he's good!" Hurricane replied before ducking another volley of gunfire. "Real good!"

"Do you think anyone can even try to get to him?" Zeus asked.

"A direct attack is not recommended!" Omega stated. "Even with Shadow's speed, he would not make it due to the wolf's reload speed!"

"Nobody's that good." Mintra muttered.

"Perhaps he has had many years of training." Rouge suggested.

"That's insane! He doesn't look much older than 16!" Zeus replied. "If he has had many years of training, and if he is working for Nega, then he would have to have been a child soldier! And that's cruelty right there!"

At that point, Shadow started sneaking around the building Team Dark was near. If he could get to the wolf, he could interrogate him and find out just what was going on. Meanwhile, Omega started firing back, trying to keep the wolf busy so he wouldn't suspect anything. The wolf had to keep ducking in order to avoid Omega's fire. However, to get around this, he decided to do blind-fire. He stuck his gun out the side and fired at his enemies, hoping to get one of them with a lucky shot. This caused Omega to back down. If one of those wild bullets hit him correctly, he'd short-circuit and shut down.

"What's the matter?" The wolf taunted. "Afraid to fight back?"

"No, we're just using tactics." A voice said from the side. The wolf turned and looked to his right side, only to see Shadow preparing a Chaos Spear. The wolf rolled to the side to dodge, but the dark hedgehog moved in for a kick. However, he was not prepared for what the wolf was doing, and that earned him a smack to the face by the butt of his AK. Shadow fell to the ground, but immediately got back up...just in time to backflip and avoid a grenade blast.

"I'll admit, you're pretty good." Shadow said with a smirk on his face.

"What's it to you?" The wolf asked.

"What is your name?" Shadow asked. "I haven't had anyone do that to me yet."

"The name's Daniel the Wolf." The wolf replied. "I don't want to have to kill you, so I suggest you back down."

"Don't want to kill me?" Shadow asked. "Impossible! Anyone working for Nega would kill an enemy on sight."

"I don't feel like explaining the story!" Daniel said as he fired off another clip from his gun. Shadow ducked behind the building in order to avoid it. However, another grenade came at him, and he jumped out of the way, barely avoiding the explosion. Unfortunately, this left him open to a shot, and the bullet hit his stomach, causing him to drop to his knees while clutching his wound. As Daniel was moving in for a kill, he was knocked back to his original position by an explosion. Omega had fired a shell from a cannon in his arm to stop the wolf's advance.

"That's it! I'll find some other place to destroy!" The wolf said before retreating.

During all of this, Axel had gone to recon the city to find out which areas were under attack and who was leading the charges. He had overheard the talk about the "child soldier for Nega" thing, which made him wonder.

_"Could that be a true story?" _Axel thought to himself. _"Could that wolf really have been a child soldier trained to work for Nega? I'll have to find out at some point."_

* * *

In the north area of the city, Sonic, Gerald, Amy, and Team Virtex were behind buildings, hiding from a sniper in the rooftops. A soldier who was in the area had already died from a bullet being put in his head, and this sniper was spot-on accurate. Nobody could get a visual on him, but the sniper had a direct view of almost the whole area. The sniper was a pale green alligator with a black-and-yellow striped shirt with Nega's symbol. The gator was wearing black pants with yellow lining, black shoes, and yellow leather gloves. On his head was a helmet that had a small targeting device, probably for calling in laser strikes.

"Alright, fools, you can't hide forever." The alligator said. "Come out so I can kill you!"

The four heroes didn't dare move. This led the alligator to lock onto them using his targeting device. Suddenly, the four heroes heard a roar above them as they saw a black-and-yellow bomber plane fly past them. As it passed overhead, a door opened below it, and several small torpedo-like bombs dropped from it. The six heroes scattered quickly, and the bombs exploded below them. The pilot of the bomber put the plane on auto-pilot and looked over the side, revealing a brown lion with a yellow mane, a blue pilot uniform with black and yellow stripes. If one were to be able to look inside, they would see black pants, boots and gloves. On his head were yellow-tinted goggles.

"Hah! That oughta bring them into Kenji's view!" The lion said. He then got a call on his radio.

"Great job, Norman! I've got a clear view." The alligator, now known as Kenji, said.

"No problem, Kenji." Norman replied.

Kenji then picked out a target. His first one happened to be Raine the Butterfly. He trained the crosshairs on her, then pulled the trigger. Luckily, a last-minute warning from Rector prevented the bullet from hitting its target. Kenji then threw the bolt, because he was using a bolt-action sniper rifle, and chose a new target, this one happening to be Gerald, Sonic's brother. However, Gerald caught a glimpse of the rifle thanks to the glint, and he managed to dash out of the way. While behind cover, he pointed out the location of the sniper.

"Sonic! He's on that rooftop!" Gerald called, pointing to the rooftop that Kenji was on.

"Leave it to me!" Sonic replied before dashing off. The blue hedgehog sped around the buildings, making sure that the sniper didn't see him, and started dashing up the one Gerald pointed out. The building was about 10 stories high, and was blue in color. Sonic shot over the edge of the building and landed on the roof. The alligator was caught by surprise and dropped his rifle over the edge, where he couldn't get it. Luckily for him, a fighter jet with a robot pilot inside flew by. Kenji jumped onto the plane in order to make his escape.

"See you pathetic losers some other time, heroes!" Kenji taunted as the pilot flew him away.

"HEY! GET BACK HERE!" Rector yelled.

"Stand down, Rector." Sonic told him

"Are you telling me what to do?" Rector asked. "I don't take orders from anybody, least of all you!"

"I'm saying that there's nothing we can do at the moment." Sonic said as he watched the fighter jet disappear from view.

"You better be right, Sonic." Rector muttered.

* * *

In the eastern area of the city, Knuckles and Shade, who had become great friends in the past month after learning a bit about each other, were taking on a white male wearing a red shirt and black pants, white shoes, and black gloves. A military cap was also on his head, a semi-automatic rifle was on his back, and a pistol was in his hand, firing at the two echidnas while behind cover, which happened to be a small building. The two echidnas were taking cover behind two different buildings. Knuckles already had an injury thanks to a bullet that grazed his left arm, but didn't do any serious damage. The duo dared not emerge from their cover, nor could they try a sneak attack because there were robots covering the rear of the gunner. Shade could make an attempt, but the robots' destruction would be noticed and she would be dead.

"Give it up, fools!" The human yelled. "You cannot outsmart Anton Morrison!"

"Maybe not." Knuckles said to Shade, loud enough for her to hear him. "But we can wait it out. GUN should be in the area, so they'll provide the distraction."

No sooner had he finished the sentence did it happen. Four GUN soldiers started firing submachine guns at the robots. Anton, as he was now known to be, kept his eyes on the two echidnas, however. He wasn't going to turn his attention to the GUN soldiers, as he knew they would have a hard time destroying the robots that accompanied him, because they had triple-layer armor and heavy-duty shields, which slowed them down greatly, but otherwise made them portable robotic tanks thanks to their weaponry. Three of the robots had machine guns while the other one had a cannon.

"Damn that guy!" Knuckles cursed. "He isn't taking the distraction. We'll need another way to get to him."

"Wait a minute!" Shade said as she pulled something out. "I can use one of my smoke bombs to create a cover for us."

"Why didn't you think of that before?" Knuckles asked, annoyed.

"Hey, I didn't see YOU coming up with anything." Shade retaliated.

Shade tossed the smoke bomb right into the space between Anton and the robots, causing the human to go blind and the robots to lose all sense of perception, effectively making them useless. Knuckles then took advantage of the situation and made a beeline for Anton's last position. The human hadn't dared move due to being blinded, and Knuckles hit his mark dead-on, causing Anton to be thrown back into the robots, and then into the GUN soldiers. Anton was stunned by the immense power of the echidna, and knew that he could not win this round. The GUN soldiers who were nearby tried to get up so they could fire at Anton or take him in, but the human had already gotten up and fled the scene, being picked up by a robot bomber and flown out of the combat area. Knuckles looked on as the bomber, along with Anton, disappeared from view.

"That was too easy." Knuckles said. "Nega's up to something. But what is he up to?"

"I don't know, but we don't have time to ponder right now." Shade said. "We have to go around the city and help anyone else in trouble."

"Right. Let's go!"

Knuckles and Shade then dashed off, taking recon duty in order to stop any robots trying to terrorize others.

* * *

During all of this, Team Babylon was taking on a tall gray raccoon with a brown wool cap, black mechanic's vest and pants, red work gloves, and a tool belt hooked to his waist, filled with various devices for creating, dismantling, and fighting enemies. His boots were black as well, and he had two battle gauntlets on his arms. Right now, his spiked gauntlets were his weapons, but he also had a customized air wrench that could fire bullets of any caliber in his right hand, and he was dead-on accurate with it. He had already taken out 15 GUN soldiers using it, and 10 more with his spiked gauntlets. On top of that, his EMP bombs had disabled the Babylon Rogues' gears somehow, which limited the birds' combat abilities.

"What's the matter, birdies?" The raccoon taunted. "Can't fight without your hoverboards?"

"Shut up!" Jet yelled as he dashed towards the enemy with his fans outstretched, ready to deliver a painstaking blow to the raccoon's body. However, the hawk missed his mark by an inch, and was immediately hit by an electromagnetic wrench, which sent him sprawling to the pavement. The bird got back up without any injury, though.

"Hmph. You're tough, birds!" The raccoon commented. "Very tough. It's not often that an opponent lasts this long against me."

"We're no ordinary birds, raccoon!" Jet said. "We're the Babylon Rogues, the greatest band of thieves ever to..."

"Yeah yeah yeah, whatever." The raccoon interrupted. "Hey, go back to your nest! A cocky-ass wanna-be leader, a geeky mechanic-freak, and a fat albatross who doesn't know when to finally stop eating don't belong ANYWHERE on the battlefield!"

"Don't you DARE insult my leadership!" Jet yelled, readying his fans.

"I'M NOT FAT! I'M BIG BONED!" Storm yelled, bashing his fists together.

"I know you did not just say what I thought you said!" Wave yelled, pulling out her wrench.

"Uh....oh. Damon, you are so dead." The raccoon told himself.

Jet was the first to make his move. He dashed behind Damon and slammed both of his fans into his back, causing him to reel forward...right into Storm's body. The powerful albatross grabbed Damon and tossed him into the air, where Jet jumped up and sent him careening to the ground. Unfortunately, Wave was ready for his arrival, and she had her wrench ready like a baseball bat. She wound up, swung the wrench, and nearly crushed Damon's spine from the blow. The raccoon was sent flying over the buildings as he disappeared from sight. The Rogues then regrouped and looked in the direction Damon had disappeared in.

"I'm sure he learned not to mess with us." Jet said. "I wonder where he's going to land."

* * *

Near the Aquaball stadium, Armand, Basil, and Velocity were taking on Eggman Nega. Velocity had been injured in her legs, which meant she could no longer battle, and Basil was intent on making sure she was okay as Armand took on Nega himself, with the fox providing side assistance. The battle had been a draw to this point, but it seemed like Nega was holding back.

"Nega, I know you're not using your robot to its full potential!" Armand said. "What's going on?"

"I see no reason to tell you, tiger!" Nega replied. "All you need to care about is how your allies in this city are doing."

He would get his answer soon enough, as Damon came from out of nowhere and slammed into Nega's cockpit. The glass busted, as Nega had seen many times, and Damon landed inside the cockpit, bruised up and with nearly a broken spine.

"Damon, what are you doing here?" Nega asked. "You're supposed to be taking care of the area I assigned you."

"Tell that to the birds known as the Babylon Rogues. They thrashed me!" Damon replied.

"Damn it!" Nega cursed. "I've gotten reports from the others that say they've retreated as well. This attack is a bust. We're retreating right now!"

"Where do you think you're going, Nega?" Armand asked.

"Enjoy this day, fool! You won't be seeing many more!" Nega said as he blasted off, with Damon in the cockpit. Armand didn't dare follow him, as he would probably be in deep trouble. Instead, he turned to Basil, who was using a special water to help Velocity heal.

"How is she?" Armand asked.

"She's going to live, but her leg bones are broken." Basil reported. "It'll take weeks for them to..."

"No, it won't." Velocity said, as she was still awake. "My leg bones have an incredible recovery rate. At the rate they usually go, I'll be back walking by tomorrow."

"Are you sure?" Basil asked. "How is that?"

"I'll tell you when I feel that I should." Velocity said with a smile. "For the time being, do you think you could carry me to your house? I'd like to stay with you for a while."

Basil immediately blushed at this. "Uh...s-sure, Velocity."

During this time, casualty reports were coming in from nearly everywhere. The northern area had 0 dead, about 16 wounded, and nobody missing. In the south district, 3 troops and 1 civilian were dead, 4 others were wounded, and everyone was accounted for. There were no casualties in the east and west areas, and the central area had 5 troops dead, 27 wounded, and none missing, and no civilian casualties. Damage to the city was small, as a few buildings had been slightly damaged, but they could be repaired. Overall, everyone was suspicious, as Nega should have been able to do a lot more.

Something was up, and nobody knew what it was...except Nega himself.

* * *

Speaking of the not-so-good scientist, he had returned to the base, where his henchmen were NOT too happy.

"Okay, what was up with our attack?" Anton asked. "We didn't even do any real damage, and you call our attack a success? What the hell?"

"I was beaten by birds! STUPID BIRDS!" Damon complained. He was now in a wheelchair, accompanied by a healing machine, and he was pissed. "And you call my "sacrifice" a good deed?"

"Simply put, the attack was supposedly a screw-up, Master Nega." A dog said. This dog wore a black jacket with yellow lining around the neck and shirt-tail. He wore yellow gloves, blue work pants, and yellow shoes. In his left hand was a clipboard for what looked like weapon designs.

"Oh, but this attack was how I expected it to go." Nega said, earning some complaining from his henchmen. "OH, BE QUIET! Now, the reason I expected it to go this way...was because I wanted to get an idea of how things were going to be for this ultimate final war."

"And what do you mean by that?" Norman asked.

"I learned something from that blasted pink hedgehog during my battle with her super form." Nega said.

_

* * *

_

"You'll never win, Nega!" Amy declared. "And do you know why? Because you're so sure of your plans that you don't factor in other potential heroes! THAT'S been the cause of your downfalls!"

* * *

"During this time that I took off, I thought about those words, and I knew that I would be up against many more heroes this time around." Nega continued. "So I staged a small assault. I sent spy robots to pick up combat data, to see how I would fare against others. I am going through them now, and I will learn from them, and create plans that they cannot stop! And I will need all of your help, if we are going to accomplish our ultimate goal: Universal destruction, and rebirth of the universe in the name of Nega!"

The henchmen cheered at that, as a few robots shot out confetti. Nega wouldn't let them fall. He would let them see his plans through to the end.

"Now, the time has come to unleash one of our main attackers." Nega said as a silhouette of a tiger appeared next to him. "Strike the Tiger, I want you to find a fox named Basil Giles. I want to weaken Armand Novak, and to do so, I want his best friend to die! In doing so, he'll lose the will to fight. Now go!"

The tiger disappeared, but they knew he was headed towards his destination. It would take a few days to find out where he'd be spending a lot of time at, but this tiger seemed cunning, and he would use it well in order to find a good place to attack.

Nega's plan of war...had begun.

**End of Chapter 2.**

* * *

Nega has dispatched one of his assumed elites to dispose of Basil and weaken Armand's will to fight. Where will it find Basil? And will it succeed? Find out in the next chapter of War of Vengeance.

Hope you all enjoy the chapter, because I certainly didn't. *slams head on desk*


	3. Apotos Ambush

Sonic and Co. © Sega  
OCs © Respective Authors

Note: The next two chapters focus on Basil, so if you don't like him for some reason, then I suggest you ignore this chapter and the next, though I don't see how you wouldn't like him. Also, there's a lot of OC involvement for the next few chapters, but things will start to balance out when Chapter 6 rolls around...eventually.

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* * *

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Chapter 3: Nega's First Real Strike

It had been 3 days since Nega's recent attack on Station Square, and the heroes had managed to fend off what seemed to be a too-easy attack. During that time, what little damage Station Square had taken was repaired, and people lived their normal lives, albeit under fear of when Nega would attack again since he had returned. But for the time being, everyone could rest easy, from the heroes to simple civilians.

One in particular was Basil Giles, Armand's best friend, Tails's older brother figure, and the love interest of Velocity the Rabbit. He had been thinking about things the past few days, thinking about all that had happened between him and Velocity. He liked her and all, but wasn't sure if he wanted to get into a relationship, what with Nega and his henchmen being a threat to everyone. It might make him vulnerable. But after the crisis was over...maybe then. She was very nice to him, and something about her made him happy. He would have to consider it.

The orange fox was currently in Apotos, an ancient village known for its cool breezes, white houses, and its Chocolate Chip Cream Sundae Supreme, one of the best desserts anyone had ever tasted. The cool ocean breeze ran across his orange fur, and he just got an inner sense of peace from the place. He might have to move here one day. However, if he were to get into a relationship with Velocity, he would have to consider her opinion, because he was not one to take only his opinion and not consider others' opinions. It just wasn't in his nature.

_"This place is just so peaceful."_ Basil thought to himself. _"I wouldn't mind moving here someday. Then again, if I do get together with Velocity, I might have to reconsider....ah, there's no point in thinking about it now."_

Basil continued his walk through the streets, where many people were walking through, either going home or heading to somewhere else. He could see many connecting bridges leading to other cliffside islands, and wondered just how big Apotos was. He would have to explore here someday to find out, but he didn't want to as of now. He wanted to do so when it was truly peacetime, without any threat of attack from anyone. He knew that day would come soon, and hopefully it would come after Eggman Nega was finally gone, whenever that would be.

The fox walked up to the nearby ice cream stand and looked at the dessert that was the "pride of the city of Apotos". It certainly looked good. Basil decided to buy one.

"Excuse me, but how much does one of those cost?" Basil asked the ice cream man while pointing to the dessert.

"One would be $5.00." The vendor said.

"Five dollars for an ice cream?" Basil asked. "It better be worth it."

Basil paid for the ice cream, and he received one in a special plastic cone that covered the real cone. He took one lick...and it sent his taste buds on a wild roller coaster ride. No wonder they called that ice cream the "pride of the city". And now he knew why it was priced so high. People would pay anything to buy such an ice cream, but making prices very high was illegal. Still, Basil now understood why it was at such a price. This ice cream was GOOD!

_"Now I see why this ice cream is so popular around the world."_ Basil thought to himself. _"Those stories I had heard about it weren't myths after all."_

Basil had heard that the ice cream would never melt thanks to the cool Apotos breeze, and he believed it. He strolled through the streets of Apotos, feeling the breeze on his fur as he ate his ice cream. The blue waters, the white buildings, the green grass in some areas...who wouldn't want to live here, in this peaceful town? However, he felt uneasy. Something could happen at any moment, and with how things were these days, you could never tell. His uneasiness turned to surprise as a crushing blow was delivered to his stomach right after he finished off his ice cream. He was sent flying into a nearby wall, which nearly crumbled from the force of impact.

_"Alright, who's got the nerve to do that?"_ Basil thought as he got back up. His first sight was a black tiger about 22 years old. He had a long gray tail that was swishing through the air, and a gray muzzle. He was wearing a white vest and white pants, regular gloves, and white boots. On his wrists were two beam shooters with three metal plates coming out of the rings and going back over his wrists. On his head was a green plate that was being held from both ears. Apparently it was some technological item.

"Okay, I don't know who you are..." Basil began. "But messing with me is not one thing you want to do."

"Is that so?" The tiger asked. "Then you don't know who you just said that to, because I'm gonna end your life."

The tiger activated his beam wrist shooters and started firing multiple lasers from them. Basil had no trouble dodging them, but they were too easy to dodge. He then figured out that they were missing on purpose. Before he could change his action, he was punched in the face and knocked in the other direction. Basil tried to get up, but the tiger stomped down on his back, causing him to yell in pain. The tiger then kicked him up into the air before delivering a bone-crushing punch to the fox's left arm. Basil yelled in pain as he heard the bone in that arm crack. He landed on the ground and looked up at his attacker.

"Just...just who are you?" Basil asked as he tried to get up.

"You can call me...Strike the Tiger." The tiger replied. "And I can call you...dead!"

The tiger, Strike, then picked up Basil by his broken arm, causing him even more pain, and tossed him into one of the side alleys. People around the area started screaming and running away, but they were of no concern to Strike right away. He was given orders, and he would follow them to the end. But maybe after...yeah. He would kill the townspeople after killing his objective. It would make Nega happy to see that happen. Now focusing on his objective, he pursued Basil, who was trying to escape in order to recover so he would have a better chance. But no matter where he ran to, Strike always seemed to be waiting. So Basil decided to distract Strike.

"Hey, tiger!" Basil called as he readied his water cannon.

"What!?" Strike asked as he walked closer.

"Have some water!" Basil said as he pressed a button on his water cannon.

"Water?" Strike asked. "Bwa ha ha ha ha! What is a little water going to..."

He didn't get to finish, as a massive beam of water emerged from the cannon, flooding Strike and slamming him into a wall. Basil had used his Hydro Blaster move, and the tiger had no chance of dodging or blocking it. As he hit the wall, he felt a sharp sting of pain in his back, due to hitting a corner. He would not let the fox get away. As he recovered, he saw that Basil was nowhere in sight. He mentally slapped himself. He had let him get away...for now. He continued his pursuit, knowing that Basil couldn't have gotten far.

Speaking of Basil, he had hidden in an alley that was out of sight of people walking by. He took this chance to recover. Pulling out a plastic bag of water, he coated the broken part of his left arm in it. This water was enchanted for healing purposes. He let his arm rest for a few minutes, hoping that Strike wouldn't find him. He wondered why would someone attack him? Unless Strike was working for Nega. And if so, what would they gain by killing him?

He wouldn't have time to ponder, as he heard someone step right up to him from behind.

"I've finally found you." The voice said.

_"Oh, crap!"_ Basil mentally cursed at his misfortune as he cringed at Strike's sneaking up, only to receive a claw into his back which made him cry out in pain. Strike retracted the claw before kicking Basil in the back, sending him into a house. Before the fox could recover from the crash, Strike tossed him up into the air, jumped up after him, and nearly crushed Basil's left arm, effectively paralyzing it. Basil yelled in pain, which brought a smile to the sadistic Strike's mouth. He loved hearing his victims yell in pain. It made killing them even more enjoyable. Anyone else would think it was over-the-top, but it suited Strike perfectly.

"Yes, that's right, my victim!" Strike said in a cruel voice. "Yell in your pain and misery."

"You...sadistic...madman!" Basil managed to say, as he used what strength he could muster to punch Strike in the gut.

"Ahh! Damn fox!" Strike cursed as he clutched his stomach. Basil then kicked Strike in the face, knocking him onto his back. Basil then fired a water pulse from his cannon, knocking Strike back into a nearby building. Taking his water lasso, Basil caught Strike in it, swung him around, and shot him off towards one of the other islands. However, Strike recovered in the air, and landed on his feet on the island, and socked Basil in the gut, knocking him over onto his back as he landed. Basil rolled out of the way of Strike's beam blast and did a sweep kick using his right leg, which the tiger jumped over. Unfortunately for Basil, his other leg stuck out a bit, and Strike did not let this opportunity slide away, as he stomped both feet down on Basil's left leg, breaking it.

"Ahhh, the satisfying sound of one person's bone breaking." Strike said with a smile. It was music to his ears, as was Basil's yell of pain. The fox could not take much more, but he still tried to get up.

"I....won't....give up...." Basil said through gritted teeth. However, Strike ignored his words and placed his foot on the fox's back, effectively making him helpless to do anything. He then placed his beam shooter at Basil's head and prepared the fatal shot.

"Any last words before you die?" Strike asked with a smile on his face. Basil didn't say anything. "Very well, then."

"YOU WILL NOT KILL HIM!" A voice said from somewhere. The next thing Strike knew, a hard punch was delivered to his face, nearly knocking him out.

"Alright, who the hell did that!?" Strike roared, demanding to know who interfered with his killing as he turned towards his attacker, who happened to be a yellow cat with eight spiked ridges protruding from his head. The cat was wearing black sandals, black fingerless gloves, a black belt moving across his chest, and was wearing a long white coat with a strange symbol on it, which people recognized as the Greek symbol for Phi.

"I'm the one who punched you." The cat said. "I am Gyrax, guardian of Apotos and its Gaia Temple, and anyone who attacks a citizen of Apotos is my enemy."

"And who do you define as a citizen?" Strike asked.

"Anyone good who is in the city is treated like one, and I can tell that you are not one, and the one you are attacking is." Gyrax answered. "Which means you will suffer for your actions."

"Oh, shut up with the nobility speaking and fight me already." Strike challenged, impatient.

"As you wish." Gyrax stated. "Your move."

Strike made his first strike against Gyrax, hoping to finish this quickly. However, he was not prepared for Gyrax's reflexes, as he bent back to easily dodge the swipe, before kicking the tiger in the stomach. This was unexpected. Strike rolled out of the way just as a spear came down, carrying Gyrax as its passenger, who was holding it in a downward-stab motion. Strike tried to take the time to attack, but Gyrax was quick to dodge as he brought his spear out and backed away. The tiger then took a blow to the face by the cat's kick, which sent him into yet another building. As he got up, he felt himself being socked in the jaw by Gyrax's uppercut, an act that sent pain through his head.

"Damn cat!" Strike cursed. "I'll beat your ass!"

Gyrax just smirked. He knew that an enraged opponent would be likely to make mistakes during fighting. He was prepared, and would not let this mad tiger win. Strike did several front flips after recovering, before attempting to punch Gyrax in the same area he was hit in. However, he missed by a wide margin, and was subsequently tripped, which sent his face slamming into a wall. He recovered quickly, but found a spear coming right at him. Dodging to the left, he got scratched in the left arm by the spear, leaving it bleeding a bit. Ignoring the wound, however, he jumped into the air and prepared to pounce on Gyrax. However, he saw that his target was nowhere in sight.

"DRAGON DIVE!"

Just then, Gyrax came down from the air and drove his spear into the ground, sending a quake throughout the surrounding area. It didn't affect anyone but Strike, who was sent sprawling to the ground. He quickly got up.

"How could you be better than me!?" Strike asked.

"Because I've faced many battles in my time. You may be a fierce attacker, but I can tell that you are a beginner in actual combat." Gyrax told him.

"Beginner!? BEGINNER!? HOW DARE YOU!?" Strike bellowed. "I'LL KILL YOU! I'LL OVERKILL YOU! I'LL KILL YOU AND TEAR WHAT'S LEFT OF YOU APART!"

_"Jeez, this guy is unbelievable."_ Gyrax thought to himself, knowing he was in for a tougher fight. "You really are a madman!"

"Don't worry, hon!" A female's voice said from above him. "I've got your back."

Just then, three arrows came flying in at the same time. Strike barely had time to dodge them, but one grazed his cheek. Looking up, he saw his second attacker. It was a female red cat wearing a blue breastplate on her torso, brown sandals, white battle gloves, yellow pants, and a light hoodless pullover with the Greek symbol for Phi, signaling her post as a guardian of Apotos. In her hands was a black longbow, and on the back was a large quiver of arrows, enough for a large-scale battle. Strike was taken aback; he now had TWO opponents to deal with. Gyrax smiled at the cat.

"Alana, your beauty never ceases to relax me during a battle." Gyrax said.

"Oh, Gyrax, you're such a charmer." Alana replied with a small giggle.

"Oh great!" Strike complained. "Now I've got a stick-wielder AND a cowardly long-range bow-wielder to fight."

That one insult earned him a knockback-kick from Gyrax.

"Don't you DARE talk about my wife like that!" Gyrax retorted.

"Okay, fine." Strike said. "If that's the way you want it, then SO BE IT!"

Gyrax and Alana dove for cover as Strike set off his beam shooters at a rapid-fire pace. There was no way the two defenders could emerge without getting blasted by one of the beams, and with how hard the force of impact seemed to be, the blast would be fatal. Gyrax sent a signal, which was three fingers, then a pointing gesture to Strike, then a hand curved into an arc, to Alana. The signal was: Fire 3 arrows in an arc at Strike. This would catch him off guard for a quick hit-and-run tactic if it worked, and it usually did. Alana pulled out three dull arrows, which she liked to use for distractions, and loaded them, pulled the string back, and launched them all at the same time in an arc. Strike looked up just in time to dodge, momentarily stopping his beam shooters as he could not keep them activated while dodging due to the fact that it would reduce accuracy.

_"What an idiot."_ Gyrax thought as he sprang from his cover and launched at the tiger. Strike did not see the attack coming, and was hit on the left leg by the tip of the spear, forming a cut, which was Strike's second one. This left him a bit disabled. He knew that he had failed. After 2 more arrows hit, each hitting his other arm and leg, Gyrax was ready. He charged at the unsuspecting Strike and drove his spear through his stomach.

"I...how could this be...?" Strike asked.

"Now, if you don't want to die..." Gyrax began. "...then I suggest you GET THE HELL OUT OF MY VILLAGE!"

Gyrax then picked up Strike, still on the spear, swung around once, then using as much strength as he could get, launched Strike off of the island and into a lighthouse about 100 yards away. The impact sent a blast of pain through Strike's back, and he landed on the cobblestone walkway. Using his hi-tech visor, he called out a teleportation robot, which immediately returned him to Nega's base. Gyrax looked on at the display, before looking at Alana as they both returned to the main island. Returning to where Basil was laying down at, Alana quickly checked him over.

"How is he?" Gyrax asked.

"He's badly injured." Alana told him. "He's lucky you came along. We can help him heal up if we take him back to our hut."

"Then let's waste no time." Gyrax said as Alana picked the fox up. "I'll see if I can get in touch with any of his acquaintances."

* * *

Three hours later, Basil was in a few bandages, and his broken limbs were in casts. He was currently sleeping while Alana was making sure he recovered nicely, as Armand was talking to Gyrax.

"Thanks again for saving my best friend, Gyrax." Armand said with gratefulness in his voice. Acquaintances had been made about an hour ago, as it took Armand an hour-and-a-half to reach Apotos, and another half-hour to get to Gyrax's hut. The two were now sitting in wooden chairs in the living room of the hut.

"It was no problem. I just couldn't stand seeing someone die so cruel-like." Gyrax replied. "Anyone who is an innocent in Apotos is considered a citizen, and if a citizen is under attack, Alana and I will be there. It is our duty as guardians of the Gaia Temple. Anyway, I'm surprised to see the son of the hero, Tobias Novak, actually here."

"Well, Basil was my best friend since we were toddlers." Armand said. "I'd do anything to assist him, and he'd do anything to assist me."

"A true bond of friendship, I see." Gyrax acknowledged. "Well, it's good to know that."

Meanwhile, Alana had finished another check-up on Basil. She turned to the two guys who had just become friends.

"He's taken some serious injury, as I've said before, but he'll make it." Alana said, which relieved Armand. "However, he'll be out of action for a day or so."

"At least he'll survive." Armand said. "But it looks like I've got one new enemy on my list, and I will get revenge."

* * *

Back at Nega's base, Nega was furious at Strike's failure at what he thought would be an easy kill. He was not sparing any criticism, and Strike could do nothing but listen as he was being treated for his wounds.

"I can't believe you, Strike!" Nega yelled. "You had him in your clutches! And you hesitate for one second, and someone comes along and screws you over?"

"Forgive me, my master." Strike said. "I had no idea the city had guardians. They were too skilled for me. I was unprepared."

"Unprepared? You had all the time you needed, and you let it slip!" Nega complained in a loud voice, before settling down a bit. "Luckily for you, I'm in a forgiving mood today, so I'll let you off this time. But next time, when I want a job done, I want it done! Am I clear?"

"Crystal, Nega." Strike said.

"Good." He then turned to one of his henchmen. "How's work on the Nega Island Hopper?"

"We need to make a few adjustments. After that, it'll be ready to go. It may take a few days, though." The henchman replied.

"The curse of superior design. No harm in waiting." Nega said in a calm tone, before thinking to himself. _"Well, my original plan to damage that idiotic Armand's morale may have failed, but I am Eggman Nega, and I will not stop just because of one failure. There'll be plenty of other opportunities, and I plan on using every single one of them."_

Nega laughed to himself as he headed off to view over the adjustments to his new robot, sure of himself that next time, he would get a victory.

**End of Chapter 3.**

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FINALLY! After over a month of waiting, an even longer wait than that for Chapter 2, this chapter is finally finished. Overall, I'd say that I liked this chapter.

Well, Strike's been beaten after nearly killing Basil, Armand's made a new friend, and Nega's getting another robot worked up in order to carry out a plan. Will he succeed? Or will this plan fail and cause him trouble? Find out in the next chapter.

Read and Review.


	4. Sunset Confession

Sonic and Co. © Sega  
OCs © Respective Authors

Note: I am dedicating this chapter to Ms. Smiley and Qwerty, two great authors/friends on the site who died on December 22 of 2009. Ms. Smiley and Qwerty, your stories will not be forgotten. I regret that you were not able to see this chapter. Rest in peace.

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Chapter 4: Sunset Confession

It had been 3 days since Basil was attacked and nearly killed in Apotos. Strike the Tiger, a new combatant in the service of Eggman Nega, had done the deed, and almost killed the fox, which Nega hoped would have damaged the heroes' morale should it have succeeded. However, luckily for him, the guardians of Apotos, a cat named Gyrax and his wife, Alana, who was also a cat, stepped in and defeated Strike. They then took Basil to their hut, where Alana nursed his wounds. In one day, thanks to Alana's hospitalization and his own natural healing ability, Basil was back on his feet and able to battle again. He considered himself lucky to have survived.

Today was going to be a good day for him, as he had finally gotten the courage to ask Velocity the Rabbit on a date a few hours ago. He had first met Velocity during the Extreme Gear tournament, and had taken a liking to her since then. Over the months, he had developed a crush on Velocity, and it only grew bigger as time went on. He knew he was falling in love, and he had to tell her soon. When he asked her out, she acted like a fangirl and tackle-glomped him, saying she would love to. Basil was happy that she accepted...but his only worry was the possibility of him messing the date up. In fact, he was already worrying about it, because he was sweating bullets. He had his usual clothing on, which were very clean, but he had also included a blue cap with a red brim. Not usual for a date, but Basil didn't mind.

_"Alright, Basil, you can do this. Just don't screw up, and everything will be fine."_ Basil consoled himself. _"You've known her for a good while. You know this is a first date, but you can still get through it without any problems."_

"Hello, Basil." A familiar voice said. As if Basil didn't know who this was.

"Hello, Velocity." Basil said as he turned around. The moment he did, he immediately froze in awe. Velocity was wearing a nice violet dress with spaghetti straps, a sunhat with a pink rose on the brim, and red sandals. Simply put, she was a sight to behold for Basil, who was left speechless. Velocity just giggled at this, before pecking Basil on his cheek.

"It's nice to see you." Velocity said with a smile.

"I-I-It's nice t-to see you too, V-Velocity." Basil said, blushing.

"So, where might we be going on our date?" Velocity asked as she walked right up to Basil, looking up at him.

"Uh...well, I decided that...we'd take a nice little trip to...Adabat." Basil replied. "It's a nice beach island continent..."

"OH BASIL, THAT'S PERFECT!" Velocity exclaimed in a loud voice, before tackle-glomping Basil. "I'd love to go."

Basil smiled as he hugged Velocity. Who knew that she had quite the power within her? Then again, he was used to this, as Velocity had tackled him probably...100 times in the last month-and-a-half or so. And actually, he kinda liked it. He needed it after what had happened 3 days ago. Naturally, Velocity was very worried, but when she heard that Basil was okay, she calmed down. She even spent the day with him, just to make sure, and that showed that she cared about him.

"So, what'll we be using to travel to Adabat?" Velocity asked.

"This." Basil said as he pulled out the Aqua Blast, his Extreme Gear board, before getting on it and taking Velocity in his arms, intending to carry her. Velocity blushed at this; she had already been carried once, when her legs were injured, but she still blushed at it, which was a definite sign of her love for him. The fox maintained his balance as he sped off towards the island paradise known as Adabat. While in transit, Velocity pecked Basil on the cheek, making him blush, which made her giggle. She was that type of girl.

"Aww, is somebody embarassed?" Velocity asked in a teasing voice.

"N-No." Basil tried to deny, though there was no use to it.

Velocity just giggled at this, then decided to keep quiet so Basil wouldn't lose his concentration. Along the way, she just enjoyed the sun overhead, the cool waters beneath them, and the ride in Basil's arms. She was hoping this would be a great day. She didn't want anything to go wrong, or anyone to attack, especially Nega. He had caused more than enough trouble over all of the times he had attacked the world, and not just from this apparent war, but ever since Tobias's days alive. She hoped that this conflict, however long it would last, would be the last one, and she hoped even more that it would end in Nega's death.

It wasn't long before they reached the sunny paradise that was Adabat. Sonic had once been here in his quest to stop Eggman and Dark Gaia, and succeeded. Now the place was a great tourism paradise, with beaches, waterfalls, ancient ruins, and even the vast jungle in the heart of the entire area. If this wasn't a paradise, what was?

"Oh Basil!" Velocity exclaimed. "It's so beautiful."

"Well, this is Adabat, after all." Basil said. "I couldn't think of a greater place. But if you like it now, just wait until the sunset."

"I already can't wait." Velocity replied, before pecking Basil on the cheek and giggling. "So, what are we going to do first?"

With that, Basil and Velocity began their date. They took their time going around the entire continent, taking rests when needed, and ultimately having a good time. Whether it was through the dense jungles, across the multiple boardwalks, through the ruins, or around the waterfalls, it was peaceful, and nothing was around to ruin things, especially not Eggman-Nega or one of his cronies. Basil hoped things would stay this way for the entire day. If anything were to ruin this special date, he'd raise hell on the cause. As they went through, Basil told Velocity all that he knew about the region, from the heavenly ruins that hung in the nighttime sky, to the long vines that anyone could use to swing through the jungles, to the cool waters of the beach. But one thing that he didn't tell Velocity was about the nighttime sky. He wanted to save that for later on, because he knew it would be special.

Throughout the day, they enjoyed the time of peace that came with the date. Nobody made a commotion, nobody interrupted them...it was truly a paradise. Basil enjoyed this, as did Velocity, and both of them hoped that this would be continuous once Nega was finally defeated, as with how things have been, such peaceful times were few and far between.

It was this day that, during a rest near a beach in which Velocity took a nap, Basil took time to remember Thomas Giles, his dad and the best friend of his best friend's father. He had a lot of good times, since he never knew his mother, who died a minute after he was born. Through the years, he spent a lot of time with Thomas, as well as his two friends. Then came the fateful day his father died at the hands of Nega. He knew immediately, because his father's water cannon had landed in front of him, and the explosion was above him, which left no room for doubt. That, and he saw his father above him for a brief moment. He thought Thomas was coming to make sure his son was safe, but he looked down for a second, and heard an explosion above him. It took him two months to recover from that day. But the training he went through paid off two years later, as he helped his friends defeat Nega.

Basil let a tear drop. Even 10 years later, he missed his father. He had no related siblings, and his father was his only family. But his friends, as well as Tails, his little buddy, and Axel's mom, who took them all in, helped him through such rough times. Thinking about them eased his pain, especially Tails...

**

* * *

**

6 years ago...

_A young, 3-year-old Tails was playing with a toy airplane that Basil had brought him. The little fox made flying noises as he flew the plane back and forward, and all around the room. Basil couldn't help but chuckle at this. Tails then put down the plane and crawled up into Basil's lap._

_"Hey there, little buddy." Basil said, placing Tails on his shoulder. "You having fun?"_

_Tails nodded. "I sure am. And I'm glad you're here, Basil."_

_"Aw, it's nothing, little buddy. It's always good to come here and visit ya." Basil said, before checking the time. "I've got to get going, Miles. I'll see you later."_

_"Bye, Basil." Tails said while waving. Basil waved back before walking out._

* * *

...and the good times with his father.

**

* * *

**

12 years ago...

_Basil was in the backyard, sitting down with his dad as the sun started setting over the horizon. The two were having a nice little father-son quality time together. Peaceful times like this didn't come a lot, especially with Nega attacking at the most unopportune moments, so Basil made sure to savor every moment of this._

_"Dad, do you ever think we'll have peace that lasts for a long while?" Basil asked while looking up at his father._

_"I don't know, son." Thomas replied. "I just don't know. What I do know, is that someday, it'll happen. It may be days from now, weeks, or even maybe years. But I know there'll be a time that such a lasting peace will occur."_

_"Will it happen in the near future?" Basil asked._

_"Like I said, son. I don't know." Thomas told him. "But it'll happen. I promise."_

_"I wish Mom was here to be with us." Basil said._

_"I know, son. I wish your mother was here with us, too." Thomas said. "She would enjoy this day as much as we are now."_

_"Do you think we'll ever see her?" Basil asked._

_"I have a good feeling that we will, someday, be able to see her." Thomas told his son. "It may be a long time from now, but we will see her again."_

_"That's great to hear, Dad." Basil said as he hugged his father. "I love you."_

_"And I love you, son." Thomas said, returning the hug, before starting to take Basil inside the house. "Now, let's get inside. It's about time for dinner."_

**

* * *

**

Present day...

Basil let a few more tears drop. Oh how long he wanted those days to occur. He missed such peaceful times, because back then were the good days when Nega wasn't attacking. To think that one man would be the cause of the deaths and terrorism that interrupted those days...it infuriated him. He clenched his fist. One man, the cause of an entire reign...no wait, multiple reigns...of terror, the catalyst that caused his dad's death, and the bane of everyone else's existence at the current time. He had to be stopped, or the good days would never come again.

He looked over to his right, to see Velocity open her eyes from her nap. Smiling, the gray bunny rabbit sat up and looked around.

"Did anything happen while I was asleep?" Velocity asked.

"Nope." Basil replied. "Nothing at all. Though I did remember a couple of special times in my childhood."

"Aww, that's nice." Velocity said, pecking Basil on the cheek, to which the fox blushed a bit. "I'll bet you miss your childhood."

"Yes, a lot." Basil replied. "It was the time my dad was alive, and everything was peaceful except for the times Nega attacked. That day he died, I was brought down hard. He was my only real family, and Nega took him away. I was left without any parents, except for Axel's mom, who took me and Armand in."

"Oh, that's horrible." Velocity said with a sad tone. "To lose your only parent during childhood. What happened to your mother?"

"She...died shortly after I was born." Basil replied. "I never got to see her. My dad always told me that I would see her one day, somehow."

"Maybe it'll come true." Velocity said. "Maybe it will."

"What about your parents, Velocity?" Basil asked. "Where are they?"

"They...they both died long ago, in a battle with a vile creature. A woman who was originally the love interest of Liikumine's dad. A crazed psycho known as Cytosine." Velocity said. "I don't feel like telling the story now, but my parents, and my friends' parents...all died in the battle. We had to support ourselves for the longest time, under a lot of struggle, before we were finally able to become strong and live on our own."

Basil was disheartened to hear this. This bunny rabbit that he liked had gone through equally hard times, so she knew the pain that he felt. He didn't bother questioning it any further, because he didn't want to make her think about it. Instead, he hugged her in comfort. Velocity hugged back, and she was in heaven for a moment. Being in Basil's warm arms, her head resting on his chest, and her eyes closed...it was relaxing for her. She just savored the moment as much as she could. And it turns out that this moment was all she could have, because a series of rumbles occured near their area. Something was incoming, and quickly. The two were on guard for whatever was headed their way.

They didn't have to wait long, because a large 20-foot robot emerged from the north and landed close to them. The robot was in the shape of a frog, and had green plating for armor, two large yellow eyes that were intimidating, and four bulky legs that had springs in them, giving the robot the ability to hop. On its back was a large artillery cannon that could fire heavy explosives, its front legs had twin machine guns on them that could rotate a complete semi-circle, and in the mouth was a tongue with a large spiked metal ball at the tip. On the head of the frog-bot was a cockpit, and in the cockpit was a familiar sight.

"Eggman Nega, when are you ever going to give up?" Basil asked.

"Give up? What are you talking about?" Nega asked.

"To give up means to..." Basil started to explain.

"I KNOW WHAT IT MEANS, YOU IDIOT!" Nega yelled. "I WAS SPEAKING HYPOTHETICALLY!"

"What?" Velocity asked.

"It means he's messing with us." Basil told the rabbit.

"Strike may have failed to kill you a few days ago, Giles, but today I'll make sure your life comes to an end!" Nega declared. "I'll also kill your girlfriend too!"

"Shut up!" Basil demanded, forming his Aqua Sword. "You're not killing me today!"

"He's right! And I'm fighting by his side." Velocity added.

"How can you fight, you stupid rabbit!" Nega asked. "You don't even have a weapon!"

"Who said I needed a weapon?" Velocity asked, rage burning in her eyes at the insult.

"I did. But that's beside the point." Nega said. "Nega Island Hopper, go into Automatic mode!"

The new robot went into automatic mode, which allowed it to act on its own while Nega just sat back to enjoy the battle from a personal perspective.

"What?" Basil asked. "You're going to let the robot attack on its own while you just sit on your lazy fat ass and watch the battle?"

"WHAT DID YOU SAY!!!?" Nega yelled, throwing one of his temper tantrums. "I'LL KILL YOU FOR THAT, AND THEN I'LL KILL YOUR DEAD BODY!"

The Nega Island Hopper then shot out its tongue in order to try and crush Basil. The agile fox, however, rolled to the left, dodging the attack. It then did a full circle turn, trying to snag Basil. However, it was no use, as he just jumped over it. Velocity did, too, in order to avoid it. The tongue retracted, and the robot jumped high into the air. The two heroes moved far out of the way, and the robot landed on the island, creating a minor quake and displacing a lot of sand, thus creating a shallow crater in the island. Luckily, the two heroes weren't injured, and there were no civilians around.

"Curse you! I'll kill you yet!" Nega vowed.

The Island Hopper then activated the machine guns on its front legs. The guns turned to the point of facing away from the robot itself, before firing multiple rounds. The twosome decided to head behind it in order to get away from the front guns. However, they didn't see what was on the back legs. On the back legs were two rapid-fire laser cannons, which started firing immediately. Basil and Velocity dodged the lasers as best as they could, but were nearly getting nicked by them. If the Island Hopper's battle capabilities were this advanced, there was no blind spot for them to get to. Except for the underside.

Basil, realizing this, signaled to Velocity to slide under the Island Hopper. They both did so, and to their luck, no weapons were able to hit them under there. However, they still had to be careful, because it was easy to become crushed under the robot's body, if not under its legs. And sure enough, the Island Hopper started moving. It was determined to somehow flush them out so its weapons could fire upon them. The two were not going to be fazed by this, though, and stayed under it. That's when the robot crouched down, and jumped to the next island, about 200 yards away. It then activated its artillery cannon, took aim at them, and launched a large gray canister. Basil picked up Velocity and carried her out of blast range as the canister hit the ground and created an explosion the size of a football field.

"That was close." Basil said with relief.

"Basil, look out!" Velocity warned.

Basil looked up, only to see another canister heading towards them. The fox, with Velocity, quickly ran back to where the previous blast was...and fell into the crater left by it. The walls were too steep to make a quick escape, and if they were to succeed, they would be at the mercy of the tongue and the guns on the legs. Simply put, they were in a hole too deep to get out of, and it was about to be filled. The Island Hopper walked over to the crater and pointed its artillery gun into it, directly at the two.

"Time to die, Basil!" Nega cackled in glee. The robot took a grounded stance, charged the artillery cannon, and prepared to fire.

"Basil, I don't want to die!" Velocity said in extreme fear.

"I'm sorry, Velocity!" Basil replied. "But I think it's over for us."

All of a sudden, however, the robot lost its balance, tipped diagonally down and to the left from the cockpit, and the blast fired...and landed in the water behind the island they were currently on, thus sparing the two.

"What? Who's responsible for ruining my shot!?" Nega demanded.

"That would be me!" A somewhat deep voice said from behind the robot.

Basil climbed out of the hole during the distraction to see the one who saved them. When he looked, he saw a familiar red echidna standing near the left rear leg, his arms crossed with a smirk on his face. On his hands were red super-padded hard gloves covering his gloved namesakes. It was none other than Knuckles the Echidna, and he had brought his Hammer Gloves along for the ride.

"Knuckles?" Basil asked. "What are you doing here?"

"I heard that Nega was targeting you, and Armand said you were in Adabat, so I tried to get here to warn you." Knuckles explained. "Looks like I was too late to warn you, but in time to save you."

"Well, we owe you one, Knux." Basil said. "Now, how about helping us dispose of the trash?"

"With pleasure." Knuckles answered, bashing his fists together.

"Great, now I have another hero to contend with!" Nega complained. "No matter. You'll die too, echidna!"

With Knuckles on their side, Basil and Velocity were now confident they could win. Knuckles started by punching out the other laser turret on the rear right leg. Nega could no longer attack the rear, thus providing a safe spot in the rear if things were to go wrong. Velocity then picked up the red echidna while Basil distracted Nega by firing shots from his water cannon, and jumped incredibly high in the air, up to about 100 feet. Velocity then used as much strength as she could gather and launched Knuckles straight down at the artillery cannon at high speed. Knuckles covered himself in fire and started spiraling downwards.

"Flaming Drill Claw!" Knuckles shouted.

Knuckles, at the high speed he was going at, busted right through the lightly armored artillery cannon's base, causing it to explode and disconnect, removing the Island Hopper's main weapon. Knuckles jumped off of the robot and stood proudly at the sight of a cannonless Island Hopper.

"It's time to finish it, Basil!" Knuckles called out.

Basil heard the call. He then used the robot as a booster, and jumped high into the air, aiming straight at the point where the artillery cannon used to be. Not only was it gone, but it also revealed the electrical core of the robot. Basil charged up his water cannon and aimed downward.

"Hydro Blaster!" Basil called out.

Basil pressed a button on his cannon, and a huge, 5-foot beam of water emerged and flooded the core, short-circuiting it and shutting down the robot. The machine guns on its legs started firing nonstop and overheating in the process, and the robot started sparking with electricity. Nega quickly hit the eject button, which ejected the Negamobile from the robot. He quickly flew away as the robot exploded into nothing but wasted scrap.

"I'll be back! And you'll pay for this!" Nega yelled as he disappeared.

With that, the battle was over, and Basil had managed to win this time. Of course, he couldn't have done it without Velocity's support and Knuckles's timely interference. He would have to repay the favor someday.

"Well, I guess I better get going." Knuckles said. "I'll see you two later."

"See ya, Knuckles." Basil replied. Velocity just waved as Knuckles started heading back to where he came from.

"Now, it's time for us to finish our date." Basil said. Velocity's eyes glittered with happiness at this.

Two hours later, Velocity had a blindfold over her eyes, as Basil walked her to somewhere in Adabat. Basil wanted to surprise her with something, and it had Velocity in suspense. She just couldn't wait. As they headed to where he was taking her, she found herself walking on a dock. She hoped Basil wouldn't push her into any water.

"Okay, take off your blindfold." Basil said.

Velocity removed the blindfold...and gasped in amazement as the most beautiful sunset she had ever seen came into view. It was the perfect mixture of crimson, yellow, and violet colors, all accompanied by the beautiful waters of Adabat's beach. It was simply a sight to behold.

"Oh Basil, this is so beautiful!" Velocity said with glee and a small squeal in her voice.

"And it's all for you." Basil said. "Also, I want to tell you something."

"What is it?" Velocity asked.

"Velocity, ever since I met you at the tournament some time ago, my life changed for the better. Since then, I was always hoping nothing bad would befall you. Then, you fought for your friends against Nega, and you also fought for me, which I really loved. But I've never gotten up the courage to say what I want to say to you...until now." Basil then turned to Velocity, his hands cupping hers gently. "Velocity, I love you."

Velocity was stunned in amazement. Basil had finally come out with it. She knew a part of him loved her, and now he had just confirmed it, right in front of her. Basil then gently pulled Velocity into a long, slow, loving kiss, his soft lips pressing against her tender ones in a definite sign of love. This was the perfect moment for them. The two slowly broke the kiss, with Velocity having tears in her eyes. These, however, were tears of joy.

"Basil, I...I..." Velocity tried to say, but had trouble getting it out. She then took a deep breath. "I love you too!"

Velocity then kissed Basil again, tackling him to the wooden dock floor as they wrapped their arms around each other. Breaking the kiss, they stared into each others' eyes. Basil sat up and cradled Velocity in his arms as they looked out at the sunset. This could not have been a more perfect evening for them. Despite having been in battle...it was all worth it.

* * *

Back in Nega's base, though, Nega had just re-entered the base, where he found Strike tossing a coin up and down.

"Master Nega, I trust the mission went well?" Strike asked.

"Shut up, Strike!" Nega demanded. "That stupid red echidna ruined my plans! I almost had that fox and his girlfriend dead, too."

"Don't you just hate it when you seem to have won it all, only to have something interfere and ultimately ruin your almost-certain victory?" Strike asked.

"I know that pain all too well, my loyal henchman." Nega said. "But enough squabbling about my loss. I have a job for you."

"I'm listening." Strike told him.

"I need you to sneak into a special facility in Station Square. Someone who I brainwashed and controlled is being held there in cryogenic stasis thanks to that rotten Tobias Novak!" Nega said. "It's located in a disguised apartment building near Station Square Central."

"And who might this soldier be?" Strike asked.

"One who was a loyal friend-turned-enemy of Tobias." Nega told Strike. "His name...Crysis the Lion."

**End of Chapter 4.**

* * *

Another one of Nega's plans has been thwarted for the time being, and Basil and Velocity have finally gotten together. And is Nega really planning on having Strike release Crysis, the elemental warrior and friend-turned-enemy of the late Tobias Novak? If so, what could happen if he were released for real? You'll have to find out on the next chapter of War of Vengeance.

YES! YES! At long last, this chapter has finally been finished! After almost three long months without an update, I finally finished this chapter. And I think it turned out well, too.

Read and Review.


	5. A Crysis for our Heroes

Sonic and Co. © Sega  
OCs © Respective Authors

Note: Apologies for the unbearable wait of this chapter. My writer's block hit an all-time high, preventing me from working on this chapter. But now, I'm back, and the next chapters will come a lot quicker.

**

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**Chapter 5: A Crysis for our Heroes**

Nega had recently suffered another defeat from the heroes, namely Basil, Velocity, and Knuckles, who had come to warn them, but was too late to do so, but in time to help them win. All of this occured during a date between Basil and Velocity, in which Basil remembered a couple of good times during his younger years. The date ended with a confession of love from both of them, as well as a kiss to be remembered. On the evil side of the battle, Nega had ordered Strike to go to Station Square and release Crysis the Lion, the friend-turned-enemy of Tobias Novak, and an elemental-powered enigma. There was no telling what could happen if Crysis was to be released. Hopefully, to Nega, it would mean an early end to the heroes.

In Station Square, the tiger known as Strike was making his way through the city via rooftops and dark alleys, trying to stay out of sight. He wanted to kill a lot of people to get to his target, but Nega demanded that he keep silent, because if he was detected by anyone, the heroes would be out looking for him, and his mission would almost certainly fail. So Strike was patient, he waited for his chances to move, and ultimately, he stayed out of sight. One misstep, and the heroes would most certainly find him, and with how many heroes there were, he'd have no chance of success. He had to be careful. He couldn't even kill anyone, because a dead body would prompt a few heroes to come out, and civilians would be looking out as well. If that were to happen, one would ultimately catch him, and it'd be over.

Making his way through the many alleys and rooftops, nobody was able to catch even a glimpse of him, which was good. He timed his movements so that he would advance at the best opportunity. Jumping onto, after climbing up, the rooftop of one of Station Square's tallest buildings, he ducked down as he received a transmission from Nega.

"Strike, where are you currently?" Nega asked.

"I'm almost there, Nega." Strike replied. "Just be patient. It's hard getting through here without being seen."

"Figured as much. You're not the stealthy type." Nega agreed. "Still, you could move a bit faster."

"As I said, I'm almost there." Strike said, a bit annoyed at his boss's impatience. "Just give me another minute."

"Fine, but hurry up." Nega demanded. "The longer you take, the bigger the risk of you getting spotted. Oh, and I'm trusting Crysis to handle everything, so once you've freed him, get out of there."

Strike just shook his head as he disconnected. Nega was impatient, for sure, but to tell him to hurry up, after telling him to stay silent...kinda contradictory to him. Still, he guessed it would be possible to be quiet and quick at the same time, though he preferred it when quietly wasn't required, as it allowed him to kill people. But his new order really spoiled what fun he was going to have. If he wasn't so loyal, he'd ditch Nega and go on a massive killing spree. But he was, and so he wouldn't ditch him. Yes, it sucked, but he knew Nega knew what he was doing, so he figured that things would work out this time.

Leaping onto the top of a nearby building, Strike finally found what he was looking for: The research lab where his target was being held. To normal people, it didn't look like one, though. It looked like some kind of technology building. It was in this place that Tobias sealed his longtime friend-turned-enemy Crysis the Lion in a cryogenic prison, and it was in this place that Nega, and Strike by extension, hoped that Crysis would unleash his fury by stopping the heroes that had opposed him for so long. And with every element at the lion's disposal, it would take a miracle to bring him down. If Crysis were to be released, the heroes would be hard-pressed to find a way to win. This is exactly what Nega wanted. The less heroes, the better...for him.

Strike prepared to move, excited by the fact that he was close to his goal. Unfortunately, he stuck his head out a bit too far, and a little girl was walking by with her mother. The little girl saw Strike's head, and quickly pointed it out to the mother, who immediately hit a nearby hero-alert pad. This sent a loud alarm echoing throughout the city, and civilians started screaming in panic. Strike couldn't believe it; he had been busted. Forgoing stealth, he now had to get Crysis released as quickly as he could. Jumping from his post, he landed in the field outside of the lab, and prepared to dash inside. However, he was quickly bashed in the face by the first hero to answer the call: Sonic the Hedgehog.

"What do you think you're doing here, Strike?" Sonic asked. Armand had told the heroes what Basil and Gyrax told him about Strike, so every hero knew about him. "Whatever it is, I'm not letting you go any further."

"Get out of my way, or die!" Strike demanded. "In fact, you don't have a choice. Time to die, hedgehog!"

Strike activated his beam shooters and started firing at Sonic, who quickly dashed out of the way. Strike was quick, however, and started spinning in a full circle, his beam shooters firing in nearly every direction. Sonic could barely get by without a scratch, but he did. He didn't, however, see the foot in his face, property of a kick from Strike. It knocked Sonic into a nearby tree, causing it to crack. One punch from Strike caused the tree to break and Sonic to be thrown to the ground behind the stump left behind. Strike, being the way he was, then picked up the blue hero by the neck, tossed him towards the building and fired a beam at him. However, the shot was a bit wide, as Strike had tossed Sonic a little too wildly.

Sonic rebounded off of the wall of the building, and spin-dashed at Strike, tripping him up. He then made a quick U-turn, spin-dashed again, and bashed the tiger in the back. Unfortunately for the blue hero, he had knocked Strike right where he wanted to go. Sonic was dumbfounded. He had knocked his adversary right to where he didn't want him to go. A noise that sounded like defrosting was occuring in there. Sonic dashed inside, but he wasn't in there long, as he was quickly blasted out by a powerful gust of wind. Strike emerged from the building, and following him was a lion in a white lab coat and black boots. Crysis the Lion had been released.

"Ah, it feels so good to be free." Crysis said as he stretched.

"It was the orders of Eggman Nega. He wanted me to free you, Crysis." Strike said.

"Tell him I said thanks." Crysis told the tiger.

"Nega doesn't accept niceties, but I'll tell him." Strike replied before leaving, leaving Crysis to handle the blue hedgehog that now opposed him.

Sonic could only stare at the one-time friend of Armand's father, the elemental researcher-turned-villain known as Crysis. He didn't know why Nega would want to release such an unpredictable being, but whatever the reason was, it wasn't good. Plus, just looking at the lion was enough to send shivers through even Sonic's spine, and that wasn't something that happened often, if at all. Just the cold look in his eyes, plus the feeling of power that emanated from him...it was unbelieveable. But true to his nature, Sonic wasn't going to back down just because of a look of intimidation.

"So, you're the elemental lion Armand told me about?" Sonic asked.

"Armand...such a long time since I've heard a name of a Novak." Crysis said coldly. "It gives me great pleasure to know that one is still alive. That gives me the pleasure to kill him!"

"Well that's not gonna happen. I'm Sonic the Hedgehog, world hero and fastest thing alive." Sonic said proudly. Crysis just rolled his eyes.

"Isn't everyone proclaiming themselves to be some kind of famous nobody these days?" Crysis taunted. "Let's see if you can live up to your so-called "hero" status!"

Crysis conjured up a ball of ice and tossed it, but Sonic simply rolled out of the way, before curling up into a ball and speeding towards the lion. Crysis jumped up into the air to dodge him, but shortly after landing he was knocked down by a crash, Sonic having rebounded off of the wall of a nearby building. Crysis wasn't used to such speed due to his time in cryogenic stasis, but it didn't matter. He still had power, and sometimes, power overcomes all. Sonic was about to find that out firsthand, as he was immediately zapped by one of the lion's thunderbolts. The shock hurt, but Sonic could still move.

He wouldn't be able to move out of the way for the next strike, but he never received it, as he saw a familiar red-and-yellow hammer slam Crysis on the head, followed by a familiar fist going into the lion's stomach, knocking him down. Knuckles and Amy had just arrived.

"Need some help, Sonic?" The red echidna asked.

"This is one of the few times I could use it." Sonic replied.

"Don't worry, Sonic." Amy said with a smile. "We'll help you take him down."

"Damned heroes! Don't you ever know when to quit?" Crysis asked, clearly unhappy.

"Shut up, O Supreme Elemental Master." Sonic said in a sarcastic tone, ticking Crysis off. "You're starting to bore me with your talking."

Crysis conjured up a water wave, and sent it to the three heroes. Sonic did a spin dash, charging up a blast of wind that cut the water open. The trio then stood in the path of that hole, and the water went right by them since they were right by it. Crysis wasn't to be beaten yet. Charging his fist with brown energy, he let loose a narrow earthquake that caused them to stumble. This left them open for a few light-charged punches, one to each of the three, who were sent into a nearby wall. Sonic and Knuckles recovered, but Amy couldn't. She stood up, dazed, then fell over, unconscious. Sonic didn't take too well to this, glaring at Crysis with a look that pretty much said "you're dead meat.".

"Nobody does that to Amy and gets away with it!" Sonic yelled.

Crysis was on guard to see what Sonic would do next. What he witnessed surprised him, as Sonic charged right at him...and missed. Did Sonic's rage cause him to miss? That question was answered immediately as he heard two words from behind him.

"Sonic Wind!"

With that, a crushing spiral of wind power threw Crysis to the ground. Sonic had pulled off a surprise Sonic Wind from behind. Sonic then dashed at him, curled up into his signature ball form, ready to pound the lion further. But he would never get the chance, as Crysis called up a short wall of earth, causing Sonic to bound into the air. He then leapt up, covered his fist with fire, and spiked the blue blur into the ground, creating a small crater and knocking him out. Knuckles finally had enough. Charging his fists with fire, he charged at Crysis and delivered several punches. However, the lion forged some fire armguards with which he blocked the punches, before delivering one of his own, charged with ice. The extreme cold nature of the attack knocked Knuckles down for the count, but not before a spray of bullets came in from Crysis's right.

"Target sighted! Target name: Crysis the Lion." The familiar voice of E-123 Omega was heard. And where he was, Shadow and Rouge were not far behind.

"Knuckles!" The sly voice of Rouge yelled as she flew to Knuckles's side. Cradling him in her arms, she felt for a pulse, and found one. At least Knuckles was alright.

"Well, I heard that there was a threat in the area, but I didn't expect it to be someone Armand told us about in a story." Shadow said in his usual calm tone.

Crysis just looked at Team Dark. Now there were three more heroes to deal with. And if his instincts proved right, there would only be more on the way. And how right he was, as he looked to his left, as a familiar red hedgehog stormed up after seeing Amy. Rector Rose had arrived, and he was mad as hell. And where he was, Raine the Butterfly and Howl the Wolf were always tagging along, as well as the newest member, Shade the Echidna. The three of them ran up to Amy, and Rector checked her for injuries. Relatively minor, they were, but enough to knock her out.

"Who's responsible for knocking out my sister?" Rector demanded. "I'll tear them apart!"

"I'd say it was that guy right there." Howl replied, pointing to Crysis.

"Then he's dead!"

Rector charged at Crysis, a murderous glare in his eyes. The glare told Crysis that he was not to be messed with. And that was true, because the first punch from Rector knocked him back about 5 feet. Rector then started a complete melee assault that Crysis couldn't keep blocking. Punches, kicks, slams, bashes...was there nothing he could throw out? However, there was one thing that could stop Rector. A little spider happened to crawl by, and in front of Rector's path. Rector, upon seeing it, quickly backed away. Unfortunately, this tipped Crysis off to a weakness. He just smirked.

"Spider behind you!" Crysis called out.

Rector turned around, but saw nothing. As he was turning back around to continue his assault, he was socked in the gut. A punch from Crysis, covered with dark energy, knocked him back to his friends. The lion was also only too happy to follow up with some bolts of thunder. Bright yellow-and-white bolts came from his hands. Team Virtex was able to dodge them, but one of them, Raine the Butterfly, was extremely nervous about the bolts. She remembered that she had been electrocuted by Nega back when Amy had a resistance group facing off against Nega, and the experience left her almost frozen in fear at the bolts. Crysis saw this, and attempted to zap Raine with a massive load of them, but as they were fired off, bullets came out and intercepted each one, the metal properties absorbing and shorting out the bolts. Crysis had completely forgotten about Team Dark. Rouge had gotten up, Omega had fired the bullets...but where was Shadow?

"Chaos Spear!"

With that, a red bolt of chaos energy came and struck Crysis in the back, sending him to the ground. Shadow then jumped off of the building he had ran up. Oh, but the GUN hero wasn't done there. Charging his hands with red chaos energy, he started firing balls of said energy at him. Crysis called up a shield of fire to block the energy, which actually worked. Not only that, but he tossed the fire shield at Shadow. But when the shield dissipated, Shadow wasn't there. Crysis looked around, trying to find him. While he was, Rouge did her famous Screw Kick to knock him down. At that point, Omega switched his right claw for a bomb cannon. Out came a bomb in the shape of a drill. In fact, his left claw, which had also been exchanged for a bomb cannon, started firing one as well. Six of them were fired from each cannon. However, it would be for naught, as Crysis pulled up a small piece of the ground, about two feet in diameter, tossed it up and punched it, sending solid pieces of earth at the bombs, destroying them on impact.

"Chaos Blast!"

Shadow appeared right above Omega from using Chaos Control, and unleashed a large blast of red chaos energy. Crysis was blown back by the force of the attack, which spread out into a 10-foot radius, just barely staying out of range of the knocked-out heroes. After the blast faded, a battle-damaged Crysis, complete with bruises and minor scars, along with a burn on his right arm from the Chaos Blast, emerged from a hole created in the side of a building, and this time he was pissed! Not just mad, but pissed!

"Okay, that's it." Crysis said in a rage. "The kid gloves are coming off RIGHT NOW!"

With that, Crysis summoned some of his fire power, then pulled a huge chunk of earth from the ground and tossed it up into the air.

"Meteor Shower!"

Crysis then fired a huge fireball, about the size of the chunk of earth, at the aformentioned chunk. The fireball hit it, blowing it apart and covering every single piece in fire. The pieces were about 1 foot in length each, and with it, Crysis sent the barrage down towards the six heroes. They tried to dodge, but couldn't, as the lion was able to control each piece so they hit the heroes. Not even Shadow could dodge them, as he didn't have time to activate Chaos Control to get out of the way. As the pieces hit the heroes, Howl and Shade decided to try and attack, Shade with her Leech Blades and Howl with his special sword. The two rushed Crysis and managed to stop his attack, but not before the others were taken out with injuries. Now down to two left at the moment, Crysis called up two light balls in his hands, and tossed them. He then fired a thunderbolt into each, causing them to explode right in front of them. They were down, and they didn't even get to attack.

"Now to finish these guys for good." Crysis said in a cruel tone.

"Not while we're around!" A voice yelled.

With that, a multitude of heroes appeared. Jet, Wave, Storm, Armand, Axel, Basil, Tails, and Cream had all appeared. Crysis was now officially in trouble. There was no way he could take on 8 heroes all at once.

_"Damn it! Outnumbered. I could probably take them all on at once with a supermove, but I'll never have time to execute it."_ Crysis thought to himself.

However, there was no need at the moment, because a laser beam fired from a nearby rooftop hit little Cream and stunned her. Then a tiger familiar to one of the heroes jumped down and kicked the poor rabbit into a wall, knocking her out. Strike the Tiger, who had come along, just smiled. Knocking out a kid made him smile.

"Cream!" Tails yelled as he ran over to her. Picking her up and cradling her in his arms, he took her out of sight so she could recover. The other heroes glared at Strike.

"How dare you attack a little girl?" Basil demanded.

"She was in the way!" Strike replied. "Anyone in the way of us gets hurt, kid or adult."

"Okay, that's just wrong!" Basil shouted. "Now I know just how low you'll go."

"Let's take it to them, guys!" Wave called out as the Rogues hopped onto their Extreme Gear. They then split up, with the Rogues taking on Crysis, and Team Berserker attacking Strike.

Armand, Basil, and Axel took on Strike for one reason: to get him back for what he did to Basil a few days back. It seemed like Strike was gonna lose for sure, but the three knew not to underestimate a foe. Strike attacked Basil first, naturally. His intention was to finish what he started. Armand and Axel weren't gonna allow that, however. As Strike was about to slash Basil, he was intercepted by Armand, who punched him in the head, causing him to stumble backwards. Axel then stomped the ground, creating a narrow quake that caused Strike to fall down. Basil then used his Aqua Sword to stab the evil tiger in the stomach. Strike's eyes widened as he looked down to see the sword through his stomach. He couldn't believe this. He had been attacked by the person he nearly killed the other day, and stabbed, no less. This did not bode well with him.

"Okay. You guys want to play rough?" Strike asked. "I can play the exact same way!"

With those words, Strike pulled out from the sword's stab, then turned around and kicked Basil away. Axel tried to punch him, but he jumped out of the way, causing Axel to crash into Armand. Strike then jumped away to recover from his wound.

While this was going on, the Rogues were having trouble with Crysis. His relentless barrage of elemental attacks kept them from going on the offensive. Jet swerved nearby to try to smack him with his fans, but a quick fire blast kept him away. Wave tried to smack him with her wrench, but Crysis was agile enough to dodge. Storm came in trying to use his big body to good use, and he actually had success as he body-slammed Crysis. He then got back on his board and rejoined Wave and Jet. They then lined up for a team attack.

"Ready?" Jet asked.

"Ready!" Wave and Storm acknowledged.

"BABYLON BOMBER!" The three avians shouted.

Storm started it off by tossing Wave and Jet into the air, right above Crysis. Wave then took her wrench and launched Jet off of it down towards the elemental lion. Jet held his fans ahead of him and started spinning like a top, spiraling down towards the target. Crysis could only watch as he was slammed into the ground, forming a crater about 10 feet wide and 3 feet deep. Not only that, but rubble from the impact rained down on him, clouding his vision. After using water power to clear his eyes out, he emerged from the crater, and he was beyond pissed.

"I didn't want to have to do this! But you all leave me no damn choice!" Crysis yelled as he charged up a massive amount of light energy. "HEAVEN HELLZONE!"

Strike had managed to get away, and Crysis backed away a bit, before unleashing about 30-40 spheres of pure light energy. The spheres surrounded the heroes, leaving them with no chance of escape. Oh, but it didn't end there. At his command, each light sphere shot out a punishing, potentially deadly beam of light energy that came together in the center of the trap. They combined into one large blast of energy that expanded outward. A multitude of screams came from within the trap, which Strike just smiled at though he didn't fire the blast. When the bright light dissipated, all of the heroes had been scattered, burns on their bodies in different places, and they had all lost consciousness.

Through all of this, someone who had just appeared on a nearby rooftop behind the complex where Crysis was awakened was watching the result of the attack. Drawn to the light energy from Crysis's attack, he was horrified to see so many heroes fall to one attack. That, plus the fact that other heroes were knocked out, was too much. He had to do something. Luckily, Strike and Crysis wouldn't know what was coming.

"It warms my cold black heart to see so many heroes fall in defeat." Strike said with a smile. "And in such a deadly manner, too. Now, can we finish them off?"

"With pleasure." Crysis said as he charged up dark energy in his hands, readying a black storm of hell.

But before he could even get a good charge going, a forceful cut disrupted his attack and sent him sliding into the ground. The cut on his back was minor, Strike saw, but whoever did this had just appeared. To him, this was likely going to be easy. He turned around to see their attacker.

The attacker was a male hedgehog, simple enough. He was a snow-white hedgehog with six quills standing straight up, with yellow streaks on each one. Ocean blue eyes looked on at his opponents, as scars were visible over his left eye, on his chest, and on his right arm, showing a battle-hardened hero. He wore a green sleeveless jacket with a symbol on the back, which looked like the kanji of hope. He also had green fingerless gloves and blue boots with white straps. Around his neck was a jewel necklace that seemed like some kind of memento, and on his back was a sword that looked like it could cut straight through the blackest of night.

"While I'm here, nobody's gonna die except for maybe you two!" The hedgehog shouted defiantly.

"Who are you?" Strike demanded. "What are you doing here!"

"My name is not important!" The hedgehog replied. "As for what I'm doing here, I'm here to stop you!"

"Is that so?" Strike asked. "Then bring it!"

Strike ran at the hedgehog, his wrist blades out and ready to draw blood. However, he wasn't expecting what was coming. A blast of light magic emerged from an outstretched hand, slightly blinding him. He then felt a elbow jam into his chest, causing him to stumble. Then the hedgehog, who had used the attacks, used the sword to slash at him, nicking his left cheek. Strike, caught off-guard by this quick onslaught, quickly backed away.

"Crysis, get up and help me, you lazy-ass lion!" Strike demanded.

"Shut your mouth, tiger!" Crysis retaliated.

"Hey, forget about me?" The hedgehog asked.

Strike and Crysis looked at the hedgehog, only to find a minor wave of light magic heading to them. Without enough time to react, they were both slammed into the pavement nearby. Strike managed to rebound and fire his beam shooters, but the hedgehog, quick on his feet but not as fast as Sonic, managed to jump over them, slicing Strike's stomach, leaving another mark over the scar where he got stabbed. That effectively finished his day. He quickly backed out, leaving it one-on-one between the new guy and Crysis.

"So, you're effective with light magic? You still can't beat me!" Crysis boasted. "I know all of the elements."

"Doesn't matter. Can't rely on your powers all of the time." The hedgehog taunted. "It just gets you hurt. Sometimes you have to have more than one offensive strategy."

"You dare critique me on my skill?" Crysis asked. "You'll die for that!"

The hedgehog didn't wait to see what the lion would do next. He went on the offensive, using his sword to slash everywhere near Crysis, but not landing a hit. However, this offense was able to prevent him from starting any special attacks. Crysis jumped over the hedgehog and fired a ball of dark energy, but a ball of light magic from the hedgehog canceled it out. With this knowledge, Crysis dared not to use light attacks, fearing they would be nullified. At that point, the hedgehog kicked him up into the air, drove his sword through the lion's stomach, and slammed him to the ground. He then pulled his sword out and kicked Crysis in the head, knocking him out. Strike then appeared and picked Crysis up, and got ready to scram. He knew this was a losing battle.

"You may have won this time, but next time we meet, you die!" Strike threatened before activating a portal back to Nega's base. He then jumped in and closed the portal behind him, ending the threat for now. The hedgehog put away his sword and started to walk away, when he heard a voice behind him. Turning around, he saw Tails flying to him, a still-unconscious Cream in his arms.

"Hey! You were incredible in that fight. You saved a lot of heroes." Tails said.

"Thanks." The hedgehog said. "Is everyone here gonna be alright?"

"They should be fully recovered in a few days, once they have the right medical treatment." Tails replied. "You should stay and help make sure they recover."

"No thanks. I have other plans." The hedgehog said to him. "But thanks anyway. I've gotta go."

"Wait!" Tails called out. "What's your name?"

The hedgehog looked back at Tails, before smiling a bit. "Name's Hope."

"Thanks, Hope!" Tails said before the hedgehog, now known as Hope, left the scene by wall-jumping between two buildings and jumping out of sight. Tails then heard a machine coming from the east. Inside the robot was Eggman. He had come by to see what all the ruckus was about.

"Tails, there you are." Eggman said, before looking around at the knocked-out heroes. "What happened here?"

"Long story, Eggman." Tails replied. "Help me get them to the hospital. I'll tell you on the way."

With that, Tails and Eggman gathered up the heroes in order to take them to the nearest hospital for medical treatment. They both knew the heroes would be back on their feet in a couple of days. All they had to do was make sure that Nega and his cronies didn't attack the city, and everything would be fine.

**

* * *

**

Meanwhile...

"IMBECILES! COMPLETE IMBECILES!" Eggman Nega shouted at the top of his lungs. "HOW COULD YOU LET ONE HERO RUIN EVERYTHING!"

"It wasn't our fault, Nega!" Strike defended himself and Crysis. "He took us by surprise! We knew nothing about him. We had no chance!"

"I don't freaking care if you had a chance or not!" Nega yelled. He was having none of this. "When I want something done, I expect it to be done, regardless of the cost!"

"Next time, we'll take care of him." Crysis told him.

"Next time? NEXT TIME!" Nega asked. "You'll get your next chance in a few days! Until then, you two are under lockdown for your idiotic failure! Now get out of my sight!"

"Lockdown?" Strike questioned. "But Boss, there's no need to..."

"NOW!" Nega yelled.

He then slammed his fist on a red button, which opened a trapdoor below Strike and Crysis. The two fell into the lower reaches of the base, where they would stay under lockdown for the next few days. Nega then fell back in his seat and took a sip of his water.

"When I need something done, why can't it get done?" Nega asked himself out loud. He then turned to his second-in-command, Anton Morrison. "Anton, I want another plan ready within the next few days. And this time, factor in all potential things that can go wrong, and find ways to bypass them! These failures are wrecking our chances at ultimate destruction of everything!"

"At once." Anton replied before heading off. Nega then decided to relax. Clearing his throat, he popped a cough drop into his mouth. The shouting had hurt his throat, surprisingly. He then started to think of different ways to kill the heroes, and especially Armand, his hated enemy.

"No matter, though." Nega said to himself. "In time, everything will work out. Then, I will be the ruler of everything!"

Nega started his cackling again, very loud and very evil. For a few seconds, he kept this up, until he coughed due to his sore throat. He decided to take it easy for a while. He knew the heroes would recover soon, and by that time, he was sure he would have a plan ready that would be sure to stop the heroes for good.

**End of Chapter 5.**

* * *

Strike and Crysis have been defeated by a surprise hero, when all seemed to be lost. Who is this new hero who goes by the name of Hope? What will Nega's next big plan be? Are there other potential heroes out there that could ultimately turn the tide of this war? And how will the heroes redeem themselves for their loss? Find out as the story goes on.

YES! At long last, the chapter is finished! So many months without even working on it, and I finally finished it! Gotta hand it to ForceWalker. He was the one who ultimately got me back on my feet and writing this chapter for you all to enjoy. Next updates won't take so long, for sure. As for ForceWalker, as great thanks for helping me get back up on my feet with writing, this chapter is dedicated to you. Plus, hope you enjoy the surprise that happened in this chapter.

Read and Review, everyone.


	6. Legend of the Scions

Sonic and Co. © Sega  
OCs © Respective Authors

**Chapter 6: Legend of the Scions**

* * *

Three days. Three days had passed since the terror known as Crysis was freed. On that day, the heroes suffered a major defeat that turned into a narrow victory by the sudden arrival of a mysterious hedgehog warrior named Hope. After dispatching the off-guard Crysis and Strike with his powers, he took his leave as Tails and Eggman took the heroes to the hospital to recover. News had spread out about the heroes' defeats, and this caused a lot of people to think that this time, the heroes may finally be outmatched. Naturally, the heroes would dismiss this, but with their performance on that day, they could not doubt that Nega was now a far bigger threat.

This day, however, seemed quite peaceful, what with Nega wanting a plan for the heroes' ultimate destruction. He wouldn't make his attack yet. This was a boon for the heroes, as it would give them time to train and prepare for another attack. But some would rather return to special duties that they had to do. Such was the case for Knuckles the Echidna, who was sitting cross-legged at the top of the steps of the Master Emerald Altar in the Mystic Ruins. His eyes were closed, as they always were when he was guarding the Master Emerald. If someone were to approach, he would know it due to his special sense.

Footsteps were heard landing on the ground nearby. Knuckles's eyes shot open, and he quickly turned around, ready to bash the invader who stepped on his altar. When he saw who he was gonna attack, however, he quickly backed down. The "invader" was none other than Rouge the Bat, Knuckles's rival-turned-girlfriend who always wanted to take the Master Emerald for herself, which Knuckles wouldn't allow, of course.

"Rouge, what are you doing here?" Knuckles asked. "Here to try to make off with my Master Emerald again?"

"Tempting as that is, I'm afraid not this time, Knux." Rouge said in a sly voice. "I'm here because I wanted to tell you that Rector and his team are on their way here. You are so jumpy sometimes."

"You know me too well, Rouge." Knuckles admitted. "So, how long until they get here?"

"Shouldn't be too long now." Rouge replied.

Surprising to anyone who may know Knuckles, the red echidna had decided to let someone else guard the Master Emerald. He had specifically hired Team Virtex to do it, because he knew they were competent and responsible. He had considered Team Chaotix, but decided against it because of a certain excitable bee and a certain bumbling crocodile. Friends as they may have been, Knuckles couldn't trust them with such a valuable and powerful gem. His reason for this, however, was that he heard of a rumor of an ancient treasure in the old temple in Dusty Desert. Knuckles was actually interested, but knew that there could be multiple traps within, so he wanted Rouge to come along to help him get through. The deal: She could take whatever she wanted from the temple without his interference if she helped him through to discover the main treasure within. Rouge, treasure hunter that she was, quickly accepted, as not only would she make a load of money, but she also got to be with her love.

Knuckles thought back to the day they were tracking down Nega on GUN's battleship during Nega's first appearance in the world since the day a 9 year old Armand defeated him. They had defeated Nega together, shared their first kiss, AND pissed off Nega with their bouts of romance. Knuckles chuckled at the thought of that last bit.

* * *

"_We're not done here." Nega yelled, breaking them up from an almost successful kiss. "And I'm tired of seeing romance bloom in front of me. It makes me sick."_

"_Then look away if it sickens you." Knuckles said._

"_You had better learn to watch that mouth of yours, echidna." Nega said._

"_I can't watch my mouth if I can't see it." Knuckles joked._

_"He's got you there, doctor." Rouge told him._

_"THAT'S IT! I'M THROUGH PLAYING GAMES!" Nega yelled._

* * *

Knuckles quietly chuckled to himself at that memory. It was a good time, for sure. He wondered how many more temper tantrums Nega would go through before finally dying. He would have to wait until some other time to think about it, as he heard footsteps approaching from the bridge nearby. Team Virtex, recovered and back in action, had arrived.

"So, how long are you two gonna be gone?" Rector asked.

"Probably a few hours. Depends on how long it takes us to get out, and if there are any distractions nearby." Knuckles replied. "Just don't let anything happen to the Master Emerald. You know how important it is."

"Don't worry. We'll make sure it stays perfectly safe in its spot." Rector said. "Just have our payment ready."

"Relax, hon." Rouge said in her usual sly voice. "I'll pay you out of any treasure I find but don't want to keep."

"And if you don't find any treasure?" Rector asked. "How will you pay us then?"

"I'll pay it the normal way. Remember who you're talking to." Rouge replied.

"Right. I remember." Rector said. "The jewel thief who can't keep her hands off of anything she likes or wants."

"Both of you knock it off." Knuckles said before heading to the edge of the island. "Let's go, Rouge. The sooner we get there, the better."

With that, Rouge and Knuckles started gliding towards the mountains, disappearing over the horizon, as Rector, Howl, Raine, and Shade then spread out to different areas in order to guard the Master Emerald.

* * *

It took an hour to get there, due to the fact that their destination was a long way away from the Mystic Ruins, but it was worth it. Standing on top of one of the tall jagged rocks, the two looked out at the deadly expanse that was known as the Dusty Desert. For some reason, no matter what time of the day it was, the desert always had a sunrise/sunset look to it, probably because of the dust, but who knows? Yeah, it looked peaceful, but the desert itself was anything but. Crumbling ruins, large gaps in platforms made of said ruins...even the sand itself was dangerous. Step in at the wrong time, and you aren't coming out. Yeah, it was that bad. Luckily, Knuckles and Rouge could glide, so they could avoid the sand for the most part. Still, they had to be careful. Get hit or get too low to the sand, and it's bye-bye for good.

"This place actually isn't half bad." Knuckles commented. "If it weren't for the dangers of this place, it'd be a nice vacation spot."

"Remember what Amy told us about the sand." Rouge spoke up. "Damien said that the sand turns solid at certain times of the year. We might get lucky."

"Should we test it?" Knuckles asked.

"I'd rather not." Rouge replied. "If we had some rope, then I wouldn't mind."

Knuckles facepalmed at this. "You brought some rope along with you before we headed out."

"Oh yeah." Rouge said, a little embarrassed. "I hope we don't lose it, though."

Knuckles grabbed one end of the rope and planted his feet into the rocky ground to make a solid foothold, as Rouge took the other end and descended to the sand below. Both were careful to maintain a tight grip, as one slip up, and Rouge would be a goner if the sand wasn't solid. Knuckles was kinda tense, and so was Rouge. But who wouldn't be if someone else was trying this? After a few tense seconds, Rouge touched the sand...and found it solid. She smiled, and signaled Knuckles to come on down, which he did. A few seconds more, and they were both on the ground. They could see the temple they needed to enter a few hundred yards away, and so began walking there.

Along the way, they took some time to look around at the ruins that were scattered across the region. It was unknown how all of this got here, but it left hints of some ancient civilization. At least, that was the common theory of such places, but of course nobody knew if it were true or not. This place was no exception. Ultimately, discoveries leading to proof of civilization wouldn't be discovered for a very long while, possibly years. But that wasn't important right now, as the two reached the temple door, built inside one of the mountains. As they approached, the door sank into the ground, allowing access. They then entered, and the door closed behind them, which meant they weren't getting out for a while. That was okay, though, because they intended to stay for a while.

"Now, where do we go?" Knuckles asked.

Rouge wasn't able to answer the question with a straight reply, because the inside of the temple had its first room be a tall one, with multiple paths leading to different areas. Even taking a look at what was down the halls did no good, because the hallways looked the same. Simply put, if they were going to get anywhere, they would have to split up, starting with the top of the large room.

"I'll take the left path." Rouge said. "Can you get the one on the right?"

"I suppose." Knuckles replied.

Knuckles then went right, as Rouge hit the left path. In the room of the right path was a large pit of sand, and unlike the solid sand outside, this sand remained deadly year-round. Plus, there was nothing ahead, except for a wall which led nowhere, and there was no secret switch or push block anywhere. Dead end, time to turn back. He then waited at the other door on the top floor for Rouge, who had equal luck, except for a ruby she found. She pocketed it, and returned to the main room and joined up with Knuckles.

"Any luck?" Rouge asked.

"None." Knuckles replied. "You?"

"Found a ruby, but other than that, nothing." Rouge replied.

With that, they opened the door to the next room, which was the right way to go. Only one thing, though: A trap! The door slammed shut behind them, and then holes opened up in the walls. Rouge pulled Knuckles down to the floor as deadly darts shot above their heads. Looking down the hall, they saw more of the dart traps. Some were near the ceiling of the passage, while others were at ground level. The rest were scattered in different places on the walls. This would not be easy to get by.

"Well, what do we do?" Knuckles asked.

"If I remember correctly, after firing, dart traps can't fire for a few seconds." Rouge explained. "We can trigger one, then make sure we're out of the way. Once it stops, we move past them."

"Or I could use my Shovel Claws..." Knuckles said while pulling out two digging claws with two shovel scoops at the tips. "...to dig around them."

"We can't defile the temple like that." Rouge scolded. "Besides, I don't think we can dig through these walls."

Knuckles, hoping to prove Rouge wrong, scraped one of the claws against the wall. To his surprise, no hole was made from the scrape, which proved Rouge right. Knuckles facepalmed. Guess it was gonna be the long way, through all of the dart traps, and whatever else was beyond the door.

"Any way to deactivate the traps?" Knuckles asked.

"Unless there's a switch somewhere, I'm afraid not." Rouge replied. "Just follow my lead."

Rouge then crawled under the first set of dart traps. It was a very low crawl, but Rouge managed to get through. A little space between the first and second allowed a bit of breathing room. Knuckles followed up by staying as low as he could. He then stood up next to Rouge, ready for the second set. One was high on the right, and low on the left. The solution? Knuckles caught on quickly. He gripped the side of the hallway, and slowly but steadily clambered his way between the traps, making sure to stay out of the line of fire. Rouge did the same thing, but on the other side. With that, there were only two sets left. The third one was gonna be tricky, as on the left, the high and middle areas of the wall were dart traps, and the right wall had a low trap. How to get through this without setting them off? Rouge had an idea. She held her hand below the middle trap, quickly moved it up into range, then moved it back down. As expected, the trap fired, several darts shooting across the hallway and slamming into holes on the other side. After they fired, Rouge crawled between the top and bottom traps to get by. Knuckles followed suit, but from the other side. Both got through safely, but the final set was gonna be near-impossible without getting hit. Both sides were lined from top to bottom with dart traps.

"Just our luck." Knuckles complained. "How are we gonna get past this?"

"You've got me there." Rouge replied. "In all my years of treasure hunting, I've never come across this situation. Setting one row off is too risky."

"Can we use some kind of decoy or something?" Knuckles asked.

"I've got a better idea." Rouge said. "We trigger the bottom and middle rows at the same time. If we both put our hands in the line of the traps, then pull them back, they should fire, like I did a minute ago. It's the best we've got."

Rouge and Knuckles proceeded with the plan. They placed their hands in the paths of the lower and middle traps, and pulled them back. The traps fired the moment the movement was detected, and the darts shot across the room into the different holes. Once the traps stopped, Knuckles and Rouge moved through. They had made it past the first obstacle.

In the next room, they found a large open space, with sand on the ground, and a few raised platforms above waves of sand that took anybody caught within back to the start of the room. But what do you do when you have climbing powers? Climb on the walls and bypass everything, of course. And that's exactly what the couple did. Climbing onto the side walls, they just clambered over to the other side.

The third room looked similar, except no sand waves, and there was a long bridge connecting the ends of the rooms. Simple enough. At least, it looked that way. As the two crossed the bridge, what they didn't see was a crack in the ceiling, from which a hardly noticeable light emerged. Knuckles unknowingly stepped through that light. Once that had happened, holes appeared in the walls, and swords appeared and started shooting across the room. Another trap, and this one was unavoidable except for the most vigilant eyes. Knuckles and Rouge ducked down to avoid the first blades, but they would have to have expert timing to avoid the others and get to the end.

The first round of blades ended, and the two used that moment to move ahead. But the moment they took the first step towards the exit after getting up, the blades started shooting again. That's when they decided to make a mad dash for it. Running as fast as they could, they jumped over and rolled under the swords, making sure not to lose their balances. As they reached the end, they could see two swords heading right for their heads. They jumped through the doorway, and the door closed, just as the swords hit it. They were saved.

"Okay, that was a close one." Knuckles said, taking a few deep breaths.

"I don't think we're out of this yet." Rouge told him while pointing at something. "Look!"

Knuckles looked ahead and up, and what he saw amazed him. Sitting at the end of the square chamber was a large statue that was about 3 stories high and one story wide. The statue was a black bear, wearing a brown shirt, brown pants, rust-colored shoes, and white dusty gloves. Visible on the gloves were some kind of brown mark that seemed like it was of a godly origin. And in its hand was a large spear, looking like it was able to pierce solid rock.

"What...is that?" Knuckles asked.

"Beats me. It's the first time I've seen something like this." Rouge replied.

Knuckles walked up to the statue, and ran his hand down it. It was clearly a powerful figure, but he couldn't determine how. There was a plaque below the stone seat. Knuckles tried to read it, but he accidentally touched it. Doing so encased the statue in a golden-brown light. When the light dissipated, the statue that was once there was now active, almost as if it were alive.

"Free at last!" The bear stated. "Finally free from my stone prison! Who has released the mighty Scion?"

"Scion?" Knuckles asked. "Uh...I am the one who freed you."

"I must thank you, mysterious echidna." The bear said with a bow. "I am Jumal, and I am what is known as a Scion, a god-like being with a certain elemental power."

"A Scion?" Rouge asked. "What is that legend?"

"I will explain." Jumal replied. "A Scion starts out as an ordinary being, no different than others. However, when they defile a special temple of the gods, like this one deep underground, they are bound by the gods to the temple, given an elemental property befitting the area they're in, and are turned into a statue, never to be revived."

"So, how do they come back to life like you did?" Knuckles asked.

"This punishment is not without its chance for redemption." Jumal explained. "When someone is bound to be a Scion, they are given a colored mark on their hands, and set in a stasis-like sleep. They are only awakened when someone activates the plaque below them. Those who free the Scion must battle that Scion. If they win, the Scion is then bound to its victor, having to follow his command to a degree. We have our own actions, but cannot betray those we are bound to. If they lose, they are immediately booted out of the temple, and must go through the temple again."

"So, how does a Scion redeem himself/herself for what they did?" Rouge asked.

"The Scion must do a great heroic deed while bound to their controller." Jumal replied. "The markings on their hands disappear, and so do they. Once we have done our deed, we leave this world for a more peaceful life."

"Then I guess I'm to fight you?" Knuckles asked.

"You were the one who freed me, so yes." Jumal replied. "But you cannot have any help, so your bat companion will have to back out of the battle area."

Rouge stepped out, and a barrier was put into place, sealing the inside off and turning it into what was to be their battle arena.

"Now, let's go! Come at me with all you have, echidna!" Jumal challenged.

**

* * *

**

**Earth Scion: Jumal**

Knuckles, being the way he was, immediately charged at Jumal, readying one of his powerful punches. However, his tendency to attack without thinking was quickly taken advantage of, as Jumal called up a wall of earth to block. Knuckles punched through it, though, only to be kicked back by the large Scion. The red echidna rebounded, though, and started climbing the wall to get a good vantage point from which to attack. Jumal conjured up several stones to toss at him, but Knuckles, able to glide at will from almost anywhere, jumped from the wall and let the stones bypass him. They slammed into the wall and broke apart as Knuckles used his Drill Claw to bash Jumal in the head.

"Oh, I see." Jumal said. "You've got more skill than I originally assumed."

"Haven't you learned not to underestimate opponents?" Knuckles asked.

"I haven't been in battle a lot since I became a Scion." Jumal told him. "I would not know about these things."

"Guess that makes it easier or harder, depending on how it's taken." Knuckles told himself.

Jumal then swung his weapon at Knuckles, but the red echidna used his Shovel Claws to dig a hole in the ground, which was able to be dug, to both Knuckles's and Jumal's surprise. Jumal, however, knew what to do to draw him out. He started stomping the ground, creating a quake in the arena. This quickly caused Knuckles to dig his way out. But before the Scion could hit him with his spear, he rolled out of the way, and countered by jumping up and socking Jumal in the gut with his fist. This actually caused Jumal to stumble, and proved that Knuckles was more than capable of holding his own against a Scion.

"Okay, time to show you what I'm really capable of!" Jumal declared. "Spiking Earth!"

Jumal slammed his fist down, and spikes made of earth popped up from the ground, each one threatening to impale Knuckles. Plus, Jumal could control where they popped up. Knuckles amazingly avoided each one, until getting nicked in the arm by the last one that appeared. A bit of blood came out from the wound, but it was nothing serious. Jumal then repeated the attack, this time with more accuracy. Knuckles was only able to dodge a few. The rest that came up kept nicking and cutting him, and soon he had scratches, bruises, and cuts on a lot of his body. That, plus the fact that he was tiring out, made the battle seem like it was almost over.

"Time to end this." Jumal declared. "QUAKE ASSAULT!"

Using his spear, Jumal flung Knuckles into the air. He then stabbed the spear into the ground, causing a quake to begin. However, the floor below Knuckles started rising and falling with an immense magnitude, and this was to serve as his loss of the fight. But Jumal didn't take into account the fact that Knuckles could pull himself out of any situation, and this was no exception. Knuckles grabbed onto one of the pieces of earth and clinged to it, waiting for his chance. Jumal raised his arms in order to expand the attack, but this was what the echidna was counting on. Leaping from the piece he had grabbed on to, he charged his fists with fire and earth power, and pulled off a double-fist punch to the face that knocked Jumal down onto the ground. He attempted to get up, but to no avail. Before he knew it, Jumal started glowing, and disappeared into brown particles. However, those particles formed into a bracelet that locked itself around Knuckles's wrist. He then heard Jumal's voice in his head.

_"You have proven yourself worthy of controlling the power within this Scion."_ The voice said. _"The Scion is now yours to command."_

**Jumal the Earth Scion: Obtained**

* * *

The force field disappeared, allowing Rouge to come into the area where the battle was fought. She ran up to Knuckles and embraced him in a tight hug.

"Knuckles! I knew you could do it!" Rouge said while hugging him.

"It wasn't easy, I'll tell you that." Knuckles replied, managing to avoid being choked. "But it looks like we've got something new to fight Nega with."

"Better go show this to the others." Rouge suggested. "They'll be glad to know this."

"Right. Let's get out of here." Knuckles agreed.

The two then got out of the temple, retracing their steps. However, because they had claimed the Scion, the traps were deactivated on their way out. It wasn't much trouble to get out of there. However, once they reached the exit and stepped out into the Dusty Desert itself, they found an unwelcome visitor: Damon the Raccoon.

"Hey, aren't you one of Nega's lackeys?" Knuckles asked.

"Lackey...such a low term for a henchman." Damon replied. "Yes, I am his "lackey" if you want to call it that, though I'm one of his top enforcers."

"Enforcer or not, you have no right to be here." Rouge told him. Damon just laughed, though.

"Oh, I have "no right" to be here?" Damon asked. "Please, this desert isn't a private place, owned by someone. I can be here as I please. Besides, what I'm here for is the treasure lying within that temple."

"Well, you might as well forget it." Rouge told him. "There was hardly anything worth nabbing."

"I don't mean treasure such as jewels and such!" Damon replied. "I'm talking about the rumored beast within."

"Oh, you mean the Scion?" Knuckles asked. "In that case, you're too late!"

"What do you mean by that?" Damon asked.

"Why don't you fight me first?" Knuckles countered. "THEN maybe I'll tell you!"

Damon was more than happy to oblige. He started by pulling out what looked like an air wrench and aimed it at Knuckles, who just laughed. His laugh was cut short, however, when he fired a very sharp bullet right at him. The bullet pierced Knuckles's arm, causing him to clutch it in pain. Damon then followed up with a powerful kick move, which knocked Knuckles about 10 feet away, showing he was not to be underestimated. Knuckles was unfazed, however, but didn't want to call out Jumal right then and there.

"What's the matter?" Damon asked. "You done already?"

"I'm just getting started." Knuckles replied. "Knuckle Slam Shockwave!"

Knuckles then pounded his fists, creating a red shockwave aura around him, before rushing at the raccoon. However, he wasn't fast enough, and Damon moved out of the way. Damon then figured he'd try to attack, but charged instead of firing his air wrench, and thus was hit by the tail end of Knuckles's attack, which tossed him into the nearby mountainside. Knuckles let down the barrier shockwave immediately, as it wasn't a move he could sustain. Damon pulled himself out of the wreckage and put some heavy-duty sunglasses over his eyes. He then pulled out an electromagnetic wrench, but instead of trying to fix something with it, he charged up a bright ball of light from it.

"Flash Sphere!" Damon shouted.

Damon then pulled the trigger on the wrench, sending the ball right at Knuckles. Before it could hit Knuckles, it dropped to the ground, causing a massive burst of light and temporarily blinding Knuckles and Rouge. He then moved in and delivered a multitude of crushing blows to the two. By the time the light faded, Damon had brought Knuckles to his knees, and knocked Rouge to the ground. He then removed his sunglasses and smirked.

"How disappointing." Damon commented. "I thought I was in for a fight as well. Oh well. Guess some "heroes" are more talk than show."

However, as Damon turned to leave, he heard movement behind him. Knuckles was struggling to push himself up. He got to his knees, and managed to stand up, his hands on his knees. He was also breathing heavily due to the crushing blows. Damon was ready to pound the echidna into the ground, but stopped when he noticed a small smile on Knuckles's face.

"What's with the smile?" Damon asked. "Are you really wanting to die that badly?"

"No. It's just that I've had a secret that I never bothered to let you in on." Knuckles replied, before standing up. "COME ON OUT, JUMAL!"

Knuckles held up his right hand, which had the bracelet on it. It glowed a brown color, and a brown spiral came from it. Up into the air it went, until it hit the ground and formed a glyph sphere. From within, Jumal the Earth Scion appeared, and stepped out, ready for his first battle under someone's control.

"You have called me out here, echidna." Jumal spoke. "What is the purpose?"

"Take care of that raccoon guy for me." Knuckles replied.

"I have a name, you know." Damon retaliated.

"Very well. But just to let you know, my decisions are my own." Jumal told him. "Luckily for you, I cannot attack allies of the one I am bound to. Plus, when I leave, the energy from the ring heals all friends within range."

"Sweet!" Knuckles commented. "Now take it to him!"

"So, he lied to me. He DID have the treasure I was looking for after all." Damon said to himself. "Nega is gonna unleash hell on me if I don't do something."

Jumal was the first to attack, swinging his spear at the raccoon. However, Damon jumped back, causing him to miss. He then fired several bullets from his air wrench at Jumal. These did hurt him a little, but it wasn't enough to do anything serious. But the Scion did not take it too lightly. He called up a wall of earth right in the spot where Damon was standing. He didn't see it coming, and was knocked up into the air. Jumal then placed his spear in his left hand, balled up his right hand into a fist, and slammed Damon into the mountainside, causing it to crumble. Damon managed to pull himself out of the rubble, however. Jumal wasn't going to let him get a chance to attack this time. He called up four large slabs of earth, which revolved around him.

"REVOLVING FORCE!"

Jumal then crashed the slabs of earth into Damon, who was buried under even more rubble. This didn't stop him, however. He emerged from the rubble and used his electromagnetic wrench to conjure up a Flash Sphere, and launched it at Jumal. The Scion was indeed blinded by the move, which is what Damon was counting on. He then charged up another one, and fired it as well. Knuckles thought there was no point in that, but he then saw Damon aiming his air wrench at the sphere, and this bullet looked like it was charged with something.

"Jumal, look out!" Knuckles warned.

It was too late, however. Damon fired the bullet, which collided with the light sphere, and caused an explosion about the size of the Scion. Jumal roared loudly, which showed that the attack clearly injured him. When the explosion died down, Jumal had actually been brought to his knees. Knuckles was almost slack-jawed. A being of such power being brought to his knees by an attack from someone who looked nothing like a fighter was pretty much unthinkable, yet Damon had managed to do it as if it was possible for eternity.

"Okay, that hurt so much. I'm almost done." Jumal said. "But I'm going out with a bang! I can't kill you, but maybe I can damage you to the point where you'll die from injury! WRATH OF THE PLANET!"

Jumal jumped into the air, and actually floated. He then stabbed his spear into the ground, causing a large earthquake. Rocks and slabs of earth became dislodged from the area and started spinning around in a twister in front of Jumal. Damon was unable to evade, and got caught up in the bottom of the twister. On Jumal's command, the twister stopped, and the rubble came crashing down on Damon, burying and crushing him under almost 5 feet of earth. Jumal felt satisfied that his final attack worked, and disappeared into Knuckles's bracelet again. Knuckles and Rouge, now fully healed due to Jumal's power, then looked at the pile.

"Do you think he's dead?" Rouge asked.

"Jumal said that he couldn't kill anyone using his powers." Knuckles replied. "But it's possible for that raccoon to die by his injuries. But let's not worry about that. Let's get back to..."

Knuckles couldn't finish his sentence. Something happened that reached out to him. To him, it felt like the Master Emerald...shattered.

"Rouge, we've gotta get back now!" Knuckles said in a panicked fury. "Someone, or something, has shattered the Master Emerald!"

Knuckles and Rouge then headed back to Angel Island with the utmost haste. As they were leaving, however, they didn't notice Damon the Raccoon emerging from what was supposed to have been his deathplace. He looked around to make sure nobody was there, then he used his communicator to call Nega, and uttered six simple words.

"Nega, we may have a problem..."

* * *

Back at Angel Island, Team Virtex was arguing with three others who had shown up. It was Team Chaotix, and the two sides were in a heated argument that seemed like it wouldn't stop. They were on the altar, sides yelling at the other, and around the altar's peak were green emerald shards...Master Emerald shards, to be exact. Rector of Team Virtex was the most angry of all 7 people there. He was arguing with Vector, both ready to go at it in a fight.

"If you hadn't shown your clumsy asses around here, none of this would have happened!" Rector yelled.

"We're longtime friends of Knuckles, so it should have been our job to guard the Master Emerald!" Vector retaliated. "If you hadn't knocked Charmy into me, the emerald wouldn't be shattered right now!"

"Are you saying this is our fault?" Rector asked in a rage. "I'll tear you apart for accusing me like..."

"WHO'S THE DUMBASS THAT SHATTERED MY MASTER EMERALD!"

Both sides quieted down at once. Standing at the back of the altar was Knuckles the Echidna, and was he ever _pissed_! Pure rage was shown in his eyes, teeth and fists clenched, and he was breathing heavily. Behind him was Rouge, who wasn't too happy about this either.

"Your so-called "friends" shattered the Master Emerald after showing up!" Rector accused.

"He threw Charmy into me after the bee got to him too much! It's his fault!" Vector retaliated.

"GET THE HELL OFF OF MY ISLAND!" Knuckles demanded.

"But..." Rector began.

"NOW! BEFORE I TEAR ALL OF YOU APART!" Knuckles roared, causing all seven of them to dash across the bridge to the island altar, and leave the place. "And you can forget about your payment, Virtex, because you ultimately failed at your job!"

Once the place was clear, Knuckles finally managed to calm down. Sitting down to take a breather, he pulled out a water bottle from seemingly out of nowhere and drank it, trying to keep his cool after his rage session. During all of this, Rouge had gathered up the Master Emerald pieces and returned them to Knuckles, who used his power to reconstruct the Master Emerald, and placed it back where it was to sit.

"Okay, lesson learned. Next time, ask Sonic to guard the Master Emerald." Knuckles said. "He can do a hell of a lot better, because he won't get involved in an argument with others over a simple guarding mission."

"You okay, Knuckles?" Rouge asked, sitting next to him.

"Yeah, I'm fine. Just trying to cool it a little." Knuckles replied with a smile. "Thanks for tagging along with me, and picking up the pieces of the emerald."

"No problem." Rouge said. "I would have taken them for myself, but what's the fun in that without you running after me?"

"I guess you've got a point." Knuckles agreed.

The two of them then shared a light laugh, and then a short kiss, as they both relaxed for the time being.

* * *

"DAMMIT ALL TO HELL!" Nega yelled, in another one of his tantrums. "WHY CAN'T ANY OF YOU DO ANYTHING RIGHT!"

"Nega, it wasn't my fault!" Damon tried to defend himself. "That echidna and his bat girlfriend...they beat me there. They got it before I could even get there. It was too powerful for me to ultimately beat."

"I...DON'T...CARE!" Nega yelled. "You should have been able to win the battle against those blasted heroes! Get out of my sight!"

Nega then pulled a lever, and a trapdoor opened underneath Damon, sending him into the lockdown chamber of the base. He then made a mental note to himself to keep Damon under robot-building duty.

"How many times are we gonna fail?" Nega asked himself. "It seems nobody can do anything right these days. I guess if you want something done, you'll have to do it yourself."

Nega then called Anton Morrison, his second-in-command, for an update on his new robot creation. The reply was that it had been completed by Damon before he left, and was ready for action. Nega smiled to himself.

When the next battle rolled around, he was gonna be part of the action.

**End of Chapter 6.**

* * *

Knuckles has gained one of the legendary Scions, beings of great elemental power. Will this power help in future battles? What is the robot Nega has planned for the heroes? Will Knuckles ever let go of his grudge against Teams Chaotix and Virtex? Find out as the story continues.

Woohoo! Over 5000 words. Wait, make that over 6000 words! This is my longest chapter ever! Talk about a new record. I personally enjoyed this chapter, and I hope you all do, too.

Read and Review, everyone.


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